ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The death toll from a massive explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port in the southern Iranian city of Bandar Abbas has risen to 40, with more than a thousand injured, authorities said Monday, as fires continue to burn three days after.
“We hope to contain and control the fire at Shahid Rajaee port in the next few hours,” Hormozgan Governor Mohammed Ashouri told reporters on Monday, as reported by the state IRNA news agency.
On late Sunday, Ashouri announced that the death toll had reached 40, with “more than 1,000 people injured and 194 currently hospitalized.”
A massive explosion rocked the Shahid Rajaee port near the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Saturday. Emergency teams have been continuously working to contain the fire, but it has continued to reignite.
The reports say that six people have been missing since Saturday.
“This issue is being investigated and there is a possibility of failure to comply with safety and passive defense guidelines or failure to correctly declare flammable materials,” Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni told reporters on Sunday. “People can be assured that potential perpetrators will be dealt with at every level.”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered a thorough probe into the blast. “Security and judicial officials are required to conduct a thorough investigation, uncover any negligence or intent, and pursue it in accordance with regulations.”
President Masoud Pezeshkian visited the blast site, thanking emergency workers and expressing his support to the victims.
Various agencies and platforms blamed the blast on missile fuel chemicals imported from China, intended to replenish Iran’s missile stockpiles.
Following the reports, Iran’s judiciary on Sunday warned against the publication of such information, warning of prosecution.
“There were and are no export or import shipments for military use in the vicinity of the Shahid Rajaee port fire incident,” said defense ministry spokesperson Reza Talaei-Nik.
A port administration official told state media that chemical materials stored at the port were the likely culprit behind the explosion.
Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali announced in post on X that Moscow offered assistance after Tehran requested support to help contain the fire.
“Despite the office holidays, they dispatched three special firefighting aircraft, including two B-200 aircraft and one Ilyushin-76 aircraft carrying rescue forces, to contain the fire at Shahid Rajaee port as quickly as possible at midnight,” Jalali said on Sunday.
Located in Hormozgan province, Shahid Rajaee is Iran’s largest commercial port.