The blast injured 10 people and destroyed a bank of grain silos
At least 10 people have been injured in an explosion at the port of Derince in Türkiye, the region’s governor told local media. The blast was caught on video, and described by witnesses as like a “violent earthquake.”
The explosion occurred in mid-afternoon on Monday, with Derince mayor Zeki Aygün telling local media that it originated at a block of government-owned grain silos and felt “like a violent earthquake.” Kocaeli Governor Seddar Yavuz said that 10 people were injured, with two in serious condition at a nearby hospital.
Security camera footage captured the moment of the blast, which scattered debris across a nearby goods yard. Video shot from further away showed a cloud of smoke and dust rising over the port after the blast.
Kocaeli’de Derince Limanı’nda patlama anı pic.twitter.com/x8SPOuKyMj
— İhlas Haber Ajansı (@ihacomtr) August 7, 2023
— ———————— (@video_stock1) August 7, 2023
Situated around 90 kilometers (55 miles) east of Istanbul in the province of Kocaeli, Derince is one of the few seaports in Türkiye wholly operated by the government. Derince is a grain transportation hub, and received regular shipments of grain from Ukraine, until the Black Sea grain deal expired last month.
Yavuz said that the explosion took place as grain was being transferred from a ship to a silo, and could have been caused by “wheat dust compression.” According to live data from MarineTraffic.com, a Marshall Islands-flagged transport ship is currently moored next to the silos.
13 out of 16 silos at the port were damaged in the blast, provincial authorities said. Emergency services are still working at the scene, and police have launched an investigation into the incident.
RT (Russia Today) is a state-owned news organization funded by the Russian government. The information provided by this news source is being included by the Libertarian Hub not as an endorsement of the Russian government, but rather because it is being actively censored by Big Tech, Western governments and the corporate press. During times of conflict it is imperative that we have access to both sides of the story so we can form our own opinions, even if both sides are spewing their own propaganda. The censorship of RT, despite likely being a propaganda outfit for the Russian government, reduces our ability to hear one side of the conflict. For that reason, the Libertarian Hub will temporarily republish the RSS feed from RT. Visit https://rt.com