Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

Explosion at Turkey gunpowder factory; 2 killed | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
Select Page

ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) – Two explosions at a gunpowder factory in central Turkey on Friday killed two people and injured 22 others, reports said.

CNN-Turk television said at least two people were killed, citing unnamed military sources. The deaths could not be independently confirmed.

The explosions occurred at the factory in central Kirikkale province at 2:50 p.m. (1150 GMT), state-run Anatolia news agency said. It is not immediately clear what caused the explosions.

Officials from two hospitals in Kirikkale told CNN-Turk that 22 people had been injured and one was in serious condition.

TV footage showed white smoke rising from the explosion site which appeared to be surrounded by trees. Ambulances could be seen rushing to the scene.

Kirikkale is home to a state-run weapons plant. An explosion in 1997 in the plant led to a deadly fire that raged for days. Back then, several thousand people were evacuated for fear that the fire would spread to residential areas.

The gunpowder factory is far from the scene of the 1997 weapons plant explosion, CNN-Turk said.