Explosion at Tehran military site kills 1 and injures 10 firefighters

TEHRAN, Iran — An explosion in a container at a military site east of Tehran killed one military personnel and injured 10 firefighters, Iranian media reported Thursday.

Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency said fire initially broke out within the container, followed by an explosion as firefighters attempted to extinguish the flames.

Four firefighters were taken to the hospital and six others received treatment at the site due to slight injuries, according to other news outlets.

The report did not elaborate on the cause of the fire and explosion.

Jalal Maleki, a spokesperson for the Tehran Fire Department, told the news agency that the fire occurred at about 1:30 p.m. on Thursday and involved a 50-square-meter (538-square-feet) container.

The area east of Tehran is home to the headquarters of Iran's Revolutionary Guard and other military sites, situated near densely populated residential areas.

Reports of explosions in Iran's military sites are rare. However, in October Iran’s state-media acknowledged blasts that could be heard in Tehran and said some of the sounds came from air defense systems around the city. This followed a series of Israeli airstrikes targeting Iranian military sites, reportedly in retaliation for Iranian missile attacks against Israel.

In 2010, Iran’s official IRNA news agency said 18 members of the Revolutionary Guard force were killed in an explosion at a military base in the western city of Khorramabad.