TEHRAN, Iran — An explosion took place in a container at a military facility located east of Tehran on Thursday, resulting in the death of a military personnel and injuring 10 firefighters, according to reports from Iranian media. The semi-official Mehr news agency detailed that a fire ignited within the container, later leading to an explosion during efforts by firefighters to control the blaze.
Following the explosion, four of the injured firefighters were transported to the hospital for further medical care, while six others were able to receive treatment on-site for minor injuries, as reported by various news outlets. However, there was no further information provided regarding the specific cause of the initial fire and subsequent explosion.
Jalal Maleki, who serves as a spokesperson for the Tehran Fire Department, stated that the fire happened approximately at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, involving a container measuring about 50 square meters (538 square feet).
The vicinity east of Tehran where the incident occurred is known for housing the headquarters of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard along with other military sites, and it lies in close proximity to heavily populated residential areas.
Occurrences of explosions at military sites in Iran are infrequent. However, in October, state media in Iran confirmed that explosions heard in Tehran were partly attributed to air defense systems operating around the city. These incidents followed a spate of Israeli airstrikes on Iranian military installations, reportedly in response to Iranian missile attacks directed at Israel. An earlier incident in 2010 reported by Iran’s official IRNA news agency involved an explosion at a military base in the city of Khorramabad, resulting in the deaths of 18 members of the Revolutionary Guard force.
