12 injured as grain silos explode near Derince port in western Turkey. Watch!

At least 12 people have been injured in an explosion that rocked grain silos near the port of Derince in western Turkey on Monday (August 7).

The explosion, as per a Reuters report quoting Kocaeli Governor Seddar Yavuz, has prompted an investigation into its cause.

Cause for explosion

The explosion, as per reports, happened at approximately 2:40 pm local time (1140 GMT) near Turkish Grain Board (TMO) silos.

Onlooker videos show startled people watching as smoke billowed from the explosion.Take a look at the videos circulating on social media:

Reports by Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency suggest that three of the 12 injured are in a serious condition.

"Initial evaluations show that an explosion occurred due to wheat dust compression during the transfer of wheat from a ship to the silo," said Yavuz, adding that everyone has been accounted for.The Turkish Ministry of Transportation, as per Reuters, said no ships were damaged due to the explosion.

"We were told that it is technically possible that a blast could occur due to compression of wheat dust, but we are investigating every possible reason," he said.

Rescue efforts

As per an Al Jazeera report quoting Yavuz, health, search, rescue and fire brigade responded to the site of the explosion soon after the incident.

"We quickly rescued our friends from the scene and sent them to health institutions with ambulances as soon as possible," said the Kocaeli governor.

Police are reportedly looking into the incident. As per TMO, 13 silos and outbuildings were damaged in the explosion.

A statement by the Turkish Grain Board reiterated the Kocaeli governor's statement and said, "It is considered that the explosion may be due to dust compression and the cause will be clarified after detailed technical investigation."

(With inputs from agencies)

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