Hundreds injured in major blast at Shahid Rajee port

At least 400 people have been injured in a massive explosion at a port in the southern Iranian city of Bandar Abbas, state media is reporting.

The blast took place at the Shahid Rajee port district on Saturday morning, shattering windows of nearby office buildings.

No fatalities have been confirmed yet but footage showed people lying on the street and there are reports of people being trapped under semi-collapsed buildings.

A major fire is still raging at the site and footage shows billowing black clouds over the port area.

Officials told state TV the explosion had been centred in the port where several unsealed containers had exploded.

“The source of this incident was the explosion of several containers stored in the Shahid Rajaee Port wharf area,” a crisis management official said.

Iranian state media reported the explosion was so large it damaged buildings and cars in the vicinity. Residents also reported hearing the explosion from several kilometres away.

Workers were rushing to evacuate and transfer the injured to hospitals, authorities said.