Several people died and many more were wounded when a massive explosion struck a medical center in Tehran.
The blast occurred on Tuesday evening at Tehran’s Sina Athar medical clinic. Tehran Deputy Gov. Hamid Reza Goudarzi told state-run media that the explosion is believed to have been caused by a gas leak, although few details are readily available.
#BREAKING
June 30—Tehran, #Iran
Major explosion reported in northern Tehran near Sina Athar Hospital. The hospital is said to be burning & locals say patients are still inside.pic.twitter.com/vdNYbYwqcx— Heshmat Alavi (@HeshmatAlavi) June 30, 2020
There were also conflicting counts of casualties following the incident. Agence France-Presse reported that at least 13 people were killed while reports on social media indicated that number might be higher. Firefighters were seen on social media battling a fire that began after the explosion.
Tajrish, N Tehran, #Iran
Update: 17 dead, dozens injured in an explosion in Sina Clinic. Six of those who died were in the operating room. Video shows an injured firefighter being transferred to an ambulance. pic.twitter.com/oGzzJqoh3h— Iran News Wire (@IranNW) June 30, 2020
BREAKING:
Explosion at Sina Athar Medical facility in Tehran, Iran, as per initial reports. pic.twitter.com/QRKIZFDQqw
— FJ (@Natsecjeff) June 30, 2020
The blast comes the same week when another enormous explosion lit up Tehran’s skyline. That explosion occurred on Friday at the Parchin military site, east of Tehran. It is unclear what exactly caused the explosion, but satellite imagery showed a building destroyed at the sensitive military facility.
