Cause of ammunition depot blast was negligence: report

ISTANBUL

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The cause of an explosion at a munitions depot that killed 25 soldiers on Sept. 5 in the western province of Afyonkarahisar was negligence, according to the initial report prepared by bomb technicians who investigated the scene, daily Zaman has reported.  

Hand grenades and cannon balls, which should not be situated in the same place, were being stocking up together in the depot, the report said. The detonators of the grenades and the fuses of the cannon balls were mistakenly attached during the delivery.  

The blast reportedly erupted when a 105mm cannon ball fell to the ground. The intensity of the blast was fed by all the other grenades and balls with their attachments on.  

Around 100,000 hand grenades exploded due to the first blast, while 15,000 of them are estimated to be under the soil. Around 5,000 grenades have been retrieved from the area during search operations.  

Some 67 cannon balls that were not affected by the explosion were also unearthed.