A fiery explosion at Shahid Rajaee port in southern Iran killed at least 40 people and injured around 1,000 people.
Iranian President Masuud Pezeshkian visited hospitalized survivors of the huge explosion that shook one of the country’s major ports, killing at least 40 people and injuring around 1,000 people.
Sunday’s visit continued to be a massive explosion the previous day at Shahid Rajaye port on the outskirts of Bandar Abbas in southern Iran’s Khormozgan province.
Upon arriving at the site, Pezeschkian thanked the first responders and announced that “we are now seeing first-hand whether there is anything or an issue that the government can follow up with.”
“We try to look after families who have lost loved ones. We take care of our injured dear people,” he said.
Pezeshkian had previously ordered an investigation into the cause of the explosion.
Meanwhile, the Russian embassy said Moscow has dispatched several “aircraft transport experts” to fight the flames. According to the Russian Ministry of Emergency, one of the aircraft is a dedicated firefighter.
The facility is said to be related to previous delivery of chemical components used to make propellants for missiles.
However, Iran’s Ministry of Defense spokesman Reza Talay Nikh told state television that “there was no import or export cargo for military fuel or military use in the region.”
The port’s customs office said in a statement carried by state television that the explosion was likely due to a fire that erupted in a storehouse of dangerous and chemical materials.
Iran’s provincial television also said the fire was under control, and paramedics hoped it would disappear completely later on Sunday. Overnight, helicopters and heavy cargo aircraft set out repeatedly at burning ports, dumping seawater on the premises.
Also on the scene on Sunday, Home Minister Escandar Momeni said “the situation has stabilized in major regions” at the port, with workers reopening loading containers and customs clearance.
Another official on the site, Road Development Minister Farzanesadegu, said only one zone of the port was affected, and the cargo was “still continuing as normal in some other zones.”
Images from the scene showed firefighters working between collapsed and blackened cargo containers and carrying out the victim’s bodies.
Authorities have closed roads leading to the site, and footage from the area is limited to Iranian media.
Authorities also declared national mourning on Monday and three days of mourning in Hormozgan state from Sunday.
Meanwhile, messages expressing solidarity between Iran and the victims of the explosion have been poured from around the world.
The United Arab Emirates pointed out that the explosion and Saudi Arabia’s “solidarity with Iran” were just as a sign of sadness as was Pakistan, India, Turkier, Russia and the United Nations.
Hezbollah of Lebanon also expressed the sad dol that Iran said, “With faith and solid will, we can overcome this tragic accident.”
In the first response from major European countries, the German embassy in Tehran said on Instagram:
China’s foreign ministry said in a statement to AFP on Sunday that three Chinese casualties were in a “stable” state.