A large explosion rocked Shahid Rajaee port in the southern Iranian city of Bandar Abbas on Saturday, with at least 115 people injured after the blast, state media reported.

“The cause of this incident was the explosion of several containers stored in the Shahid Rajaee Port wharf area. We are currently evacuating and transferring the injured to medical centres,” a local crisis management official told state TV.

Fars news agency reported that 47 people were injured according to initial estimates.

According to Yektaperast, the head of Iran’s national emergency services stated that the injured were taken to hospital.

Videos shared online indicate that the customs hall at Bandar Abbas port suffered damage due to the powerful explosion at the Shahid Rajaee terminal, as reported by local media.

Over 40 of the injured have been taken to Shahid Mohammadi Hospital.

In response, 15 ambulances and four ambulance buses have been sent from Bandar Abbas, Lar, and Fars provinces.

Additionally, a medical evacuation helicopter from Larestan was dispatched to the location.

Semi-official Tasnim news agency added that the port’s activities were suspended to extinguish the fire and that considering the large number of port employees “many people were probably injured or even killed in the incident.”

The blast shattered windows within a radius of several kilometres, Iranian media said, with footage shared online showing a mushroom cloud forming following the explosion.

Hormozgan’s crisis management chief, Mehrdad Hassanzadeh, said that “the detonation of several stored containers in the port yard,” triggering the blast.

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