Massive explosion rocks Iran’s key port: +500 casualties
Shafaq News/ A powerful explosion rocked Iran’s Shahid Rajaee port in the southern city of Bandar Abbas on Saturday, causing four fatalities and 516 injuries, Iranian media reported.
A video from Mehr news agency showed surveillance footage of the explosion, which appears to have occurred in a warehouse at the port. Additional footage revealed helicopters dropping water on the fire, which caused widespread damage.
The video shows CCTV footage of the moment when a huge explosion struck the Shahid Rajaee Port in southern Iran on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/4kLly9m7mg
— Mehr News Agency (@MehrnewsCom) April 26, 2025
The region's governor, Mohammad Ashouri Taziani, stated that the injured were transferred to Bandar Abbas medical centers, and the fire had been contained. The port has been closed, and maritime operations have been suspended.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered an investigation into the cause of the blast. “The Interior Minister had been sent to the region to examine the dimensions of the accident,” he wrote on X.
ضمن ابراز تاسف عمیق و همدردی با حادثه دیدگان در استان هرمزگان، دستور بررسی وضعیت و علل حادثه را صادر کردم. وزیر کشور به عنوان نماینده ویژه جهت بررسی دقیق ابعاد سانحه، ایجاد هماهنگیهای لازم و رسیدگی به وضعیت مصدومان به منطقه اعزام شد.
— Masoud Pezeshkian (@drpezeshkian) April 26, 2025
Meanwhile, government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani noted that while the cause of the explosion has yet to be definitively established, “what has been determined is that containers were stored in a corner of the port that likely contained chemicals which exploded.”
Shahid Rajaee is a major facility covering 2,400 hectares, handling 70 million tons of cargo annually, including oil and general shipping. With nearly 500,000 square meters of warehouse space and 35 shipping berths, it is one of the largest ports in the region.
This story was updated to include the number of casualties and the potential cause of the blast.
