Tehran - Saba:
Babak Yektaparast, spokesperson for Iran’s Emergency Organization, announced that the number of wounded in the massive explosion at Shahid Rajaee Port in Bandar Abbas (Hormozgan Province, southern Iran) has risen to 516, with the injured transferred to medical centers.
Yektaparst told the official Iranian news agency IRNA: "So far, 15 ambulances and 4 emergency buses have been dispatched to the scene to transport the injured."
Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mahajarani stated: "What has been determined so far is that containers stored in one section of the port—possibly containing chemicals—exploded. Until the fire is fully extinguished, it is difficult to provide a precise and expert comment on the cause and origin of the incident."
Mehrdad Hassanzadeh, director-general of crisis management in Hormozgan Province, said: "Evacuation and transfer of the injured are currently underway."
Meanwhile, director-general of the Iranian Red Crescent Society in Hormozgan Province (southern Iran), noted: "A comprehensive investigation is being conducted, and more detailed information will be provided to the public after the initial probe."
The massive explosion occurred on Saturday afternoon in Shahid Rajaei Port, west of Bandar Abbas. The cause of the blast remains undetermined.
The National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company stated that the explosion was unrelated to refineries, fuel tanks, or oil pipelines operated by the company in the area.
Earlier, emergency management spokesperson Babak Yektaparst reported: "Following the huge explosion at Shahid Rajaee Port in Bandar Abbas, emergency forces were rapidly mobilized, and 281 injured were transported to hospitals."
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