Iranian authorities announced yesterday that the fire at the Shahid Rajaee Port in Bandar Abbas had finally been put out. Hossein Zafari, spokesperson for Iran’s National Disaster Management Organization, said that the operations to put out the fire had been completed, reported Mehr News. The spokesman added that as many as 1,072 who had been injured in the incident have been discharged from the hospital, while 138 others injured were still being treated in the hospital. The death toll has been put at 70.
Rumors persist that some military-related chemical was involved in the disaster. According to AP, the port reportedly took in a chemical component needed for solid fuel for ballistic missiles—something denied by authorities, though they’ve not explained the source of the power that caused such destruction. AP also published satellite photos that it said showed that the blast disintegrated a building next to the blast site, which appeared to be in a row where other containers had once stood. The explosion also shredded the majority of another building just to the west. The force of the blast also could be seen, with what appeared to be two craters measuring some 50 meters (165 feet) across. Other containers nearby appeared smashed and distended by the explosion and the intense fire that followed.
