On the evening of Saturday, April 26, 2025, a massive explosion occurred at Rajaei Wharf, one of the strategic docks of Bandar Abbas, causing extensive damage. Numerous videos circulated showing the state of the dock after the explosion, including damage to vehicles, infrastructure, and the spread of fire. However, according to provincial and security officials, the cause of the explosion has not yet been identified.
The Director General of Crisis Management for Hormozgan Province announced a few hours after the explosion, as smoke covered the skies of Bandar Abbas, that all schools, universities, and government offices in Bandar Abbas County would be closed on Sunday, April 27.
Mohammad Ashouri, the governor of Hormozgan Province, stated on Sunday evening that the death toll from the incident at Shahid Rajaei Port had reached forty people, with nine hundred others injured or wounded.
The full shutdown in Bandar Abbas was announced following a warning from the Iranian regime’s Ministry of Health, stating that the potential release of pollutants “such as ammonia, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide into the city’s atmosphere” had placed air quality in an emergency pollution condition.
Saeed Jafari, CEO of Sina Marine and Port Services Development Company, told the regime-affiliated ILNA news agency: “The strength and blast wave, the destruction radius, and other characteristics of yesterday’s explosion indicate that the cargo involved was extremely dangerous and, according to the FAL Convention and port regulations, should have been officially and in writing declared as dangerous goods by the shipping company to the port authorities. However, this cargo was declared, packaged, and delivered as ordinary and non-hazardous cargo.”
Earlier, The New York Times reported, citing an individual connected to the Iranian regime’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) who wished to remain anonymous due to the sensitivity of the security matter, that the explosive material at Rajaei Shahr Port was “sodium perchlorate, one of the main components of solid rocket fuel.”
Rajaei Wharf is one of the busiest docks at the port. The fire has spread extensively and has yet to be brought under control.
Mohsen Heydarian, commander of Abdolkarimi Air Base in Bandar Abbas, announced the dispatch of a fire station, equipment, and medical staff from the Ninth Tactical Fighter Base to assist victims of the Rajaei Port incident. Some media outlets reported around 1:00 AM on April 27 that the fire had been partially brought under control.
The firefighting facilities in Bandar Abbas are reportedly inadequate. There was not even a bulldozer available to build embankments around the fire site.
According to the state-run Mehr News Agency, Mojtaba Khaledi, spokesperson for the Iranian regime’s Red Crescent Society, announced that the number of those injured in the explosion at Rajaei Port has reached 1,242 people.
Eyewitness reports indicate that the condition of the wounded is tragic. Although details are scarce, many of the injured are reportedly in critical condition, with several cases of amputations. Many people have sustained eye injuries due to metal debris striking them like shrapnel. Car windows shattered over people’s faces and bodies, and windows of homes and buildings both near and far from the dock were blown out. Victims were not limited to those present at the wharf; people farther away from the site were also injured by the blast.
Several noble doctors and nurses in the city are posting the names of the injured and wounded admitted to their hospitals on Instagram and their personal accounts; meaning even this simple task of providing information cannot be handled by the regime, and the burden has fallen on the people.
The regime’s Tasnim news agency, quoting an employee from one of the offices at Rajaei Port, reported: “Some employees are still trapped under the collapsed roofs, and we are trying to rescue them.”
Internet speed in Bandar Abbas has dropped drastically, and within one or two hours after the explosion, the Intelligence Organization of the IRGC took full control of the Rajaei Port area, port facilities, and adjacent customs buildings.
After being deployed, the security forces expelled the port and customs protection guards from the area and are not allowing anyone to enter. Some people had parked their cars in the parking lots of Rajaei Port and the customs area, but the security forces are not allowing them to retrieve their vehicles.
Rajaei Wharf is located in Hormozgan Province, near the city of Bandar Abbas. Since the 1980s, it has been Iran’s main container and commercial port, bearing a significant share of the country’s foreign trade.
At least 4,000 people have been directly employed in an area covering 2,400 square kilometers.
Rajaei Port alone handles 58 percent of non-oil operations, 43 percent of oil operations, and 85 percent of container operations of Iran’s ports. It has access to international open waters and is connected to the country’s road and rail transportation networks.
More than 40 berths for docking ocean-going vessels have been operational at Rajaei Port, and despite the severe U.S. sanctions on Iran’s maritime trade following the withdrawal from the JCPOA, Rajaei Port has continued to play a vital role in Iran’s economy.
