At least two people were killed in a gas explosion near a market in southwest Iran, state media IRIB reported; photos of the blast's aftermath are currently circulating online.
The market in thought to be located in Ahvaz, capital of Iran's Khuzestan province. Reports suggest that six more people have been injured as a result of explosion.
Tweet: 2 killed in gas explosion in Ameri bazaar in Ahvaz. In this explosion that took place today, 2 people have been killed so far and 6 others have been injured.
📸 ۲ کشته در انفجار گاز بازارچه عامری اهواز
— jonoub_fouri (@Jonoub_fouri) October 11, 2020
🔹در این انفجار که امروز رخ داد تاکنون ۲ نفر کشته و ۶ نفر دیگر مصدوم شدند/صداوسیما #حوادث
🏙 @Jonoub_Fouri pic.twitter.com/Si5bm6Urt9
Later it was reported that an explosion had taken place inside a two-storey house near the Al-Amiri market.
The explosion is believed to also have caused damage to nearby shops and constructions.
Photos and videos from the site show how fire workers and rescue teams are searching for survivors under the rubble of the building. The search for those trapped is still ongoing, authorities say.
#عاجل | مقتل اثنين وإصابة ستة آخرين على الأقل في انفجار غاز داخل أحد المنازل بالقرب من سوق العامري الشعبي بمنطقة #الأهواز جنوب #إيران، وما زال البحث جارياً لاكتشاف محاصرين تحت الأنقاض pic.twitter.com/WpX2Sc2IJu
— 24Live (@20fourLive) October 11, 2020
Tweet: Dead and wounded in an explosion caused by a gas leak in a market in Medina Southwest Iran.
قتلى وجرحى في انفجار ناجم عن تسرب غاز في سوق بمدينة #الأهواز جنوب غرب #إيران#إرم_نيوز pic.twitter.com/Z5yMqwtHul
— إرم نيوز (@EremNews) October 11, 2020
The head of the Ahvaz Municipality Fire and Safety Services Organisation later said that the body of a third person killed in the blast was later discovered under the rubble, IRNA reports.
Ahvaz, home to more than 1.3 million population, is the capital of the oil-rich Khuzestan province.
This summer, a blaze hit a power station in the city, leading to partial outages. Shortly before that, 19 people were killed in an explosion at a medical facility north of Tehran, which authorities said was caused by a gas leak. A similar incident had occurred on 26 June 2020, when an explosion, also caused by a gas leak from a storage facility, hit an area east of the Iranian capital near the Parchin military and weapons development base.
