FIRE AT AFGHAN-IRAN BORDER DESTROYS HUNDREDS OF TRUCKS, PROBE LAUNCHED

Sun 14 February 2021:

A massive blast and subsequent fire Saturday at a customs outpost in western Afghanistan on the border with Iran left more than 60 people injured and destroyed hundreds of trucks.

A fuel tanker exploded at the Islam Qala crossing in Afghanistan’s western Herat province causing a massive fire that consumed more than 500 trucks carrying natural gas and fuel, according to Afghan officials and Iranian state media.

“We were told that 100 or 200 tankers have been destroyed, but this number could be higher. We need more time to find out the extent of the damage,” Jailani Farhad, the spokesman for the governor of Herat province said after visiting the scene.
Around 20 people injured in the fire have been taken to hospital, he added.

Videos posted on social media show towering flames and huge clouds of thick black smoke billowing into the sky.

FIRE AT #Afghan –#Iran BORDER DESTROYS HUNDREDS OF TRUCKS pic.twitter.com/Ev6TF9Lqfo

— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 14, 2021

FIRE AT AFGHAN-IRAN BORDER DESTROYS HUNDREDS OF TRUCK pic.twitter.com/XPys6GKE32

— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 14, 2021

The finance ministry said initial reports were that the fire started in a tanker before quickly spreading, causing “heavy financial losses”, including of fuel, tankers and customs facilities.

It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the blast. Wahid Qatali, Herat’s provincial governor, said Afghan first responders did not have the means to put out the huge fire and had requested support from Iran in the form of fire-fighting aircraft.

“For the time being, we can’t even talk about the casualties,” Qatali told media.

Two explosions at the border crossing were powerful enough to be spotted from space by NASA satellites. One blast erupted around 1:10 p.m. Afghan time (8:40 a.m. GMT), the next around a half-hour later at 1:42 p.m. local (9:12 a.m. GMT).

The fire continued to burn after nightfall, and forced Afghanistan to shut down its electrical supply from Iran, said Wahidullah Tawhidi, spokesperson for the Ministry of Power Supply. Tawhidi said 100 megawatts (MW) of electricity imported from Iran to Herat province had been disconnected because two pylons had burned down. He said 60% of Herat, one of Afghanistan’s largest provinces, was without power.

Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency quoted truck drivers as saying more than 500 trucks carrying natural gas and fuel have burned. More than 300 vehicles carrying gas, diesel and gasoline exploded, Hossein Akhundzadeh, a regional Iranian trade official, told ISNA.

“It’s not known whether the drivers were able to escape or not. The blaze has not been contained yet and exact information is not available,” he said.

A delegation has been despatched from the capital Kabul to investigate the blaze, the ministry added. Younus Qazi Zada, the head of the Herat Chamber of Commerce, on Saturday said initial estimates were of “millions of dollars of losses”.

Large parts of Herat province were without power on Sunday.

The Islam Qala border crossing is around 120 kilometers (75 miles) west of the city of Herat. It is a major transit route between Afghanistan and Iran.

Afghanistan has received waivers from Washington allowing it to import oil and gas from Iran despite US sanctions.