An explosion occurred in the Turkish port of Derince yesterday afternoon which caused great damage to grain silos located in the port.
The explosion happened around 2:40 PM local time during a transfer of grain from a ship to the silos in port. According to the latest information available, the blast in the port injured 12 people, three of whom were in serious condition. No ships were damaged due to the explosion.
One of the people on site was caught under the rubble but was fortunately rescued, according to the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority. All other personnel were accounted for.
Kocaeli Governor Seddar Yavuz said that initial evaluations show that an explosion occurred due to wheat dust compression during the transfer of wheat from a ship to the silo.
“We were told that it is technically possible that a blast could occur due to the compression of wheat dust, but we are investigating every possible reason,” Yavuz added.
The initial fear was another massive earthquake but that was proven not to be the case. The removal of grain from the damaged area started soon after the incident. The silos contain up to 8 million tons of wheat, barley, legumes, chickpeas, and lentils.
The fire caused by the blast was extinguished by 112 teams that arrived on site which included the Turkish Police, Gendarmerie, and firefighters.
Turkish officials claimed that 13 silos and surrounding buildings have been heavily damaged, two of them destroyed, and that the police have started investigating the explosion.
