Sixteen people lost their lives and thirteen others sustained injuries in an industrial explosion at a steel plant in western Turkiye. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed the casualty figures after a Cabinet meeting at the Presidential Complex in Ankara.
The blast struck the HABAS Iron and Steel Plant located in the Aliaga district of Izmir. The incident occurred at around 11.46 am local time during scheduled furnace replacement work.
Izmir Governor Suleyman Elban explained the sequence of events to reporters. A ceiling crane collapsed inside the plant, causing heavy materials to crash down into an electric arc furnace. The falling debris damaged a natural gas line, triggering the violent explosion.
Initial reports from the governor placed the death toll at ten, with fifteen workers injured, including four individuals listed in serious condition. Search and rescue operations continued at the site as authorities worked to locate individuals believed to be trapped beneath the rubble.
Approximately two hundred workers were present at the facility during the maintenance operations. Regular production shifts at the plant typically involve more than three hundred personnel.
President Erdogan announced that both judicial and administrative investigations had been launched to determine the cause of the disaster and establish accountability.
An investigation has been launched into the explosion, both judicially and administratively, Erdogan said following the Cabinet meeting. The cause and circumstances of this tragic incident, which has deeply saddened our nation, as well as any negligence and those responsible, will be established.
Labor and Social Security Minister Vedat Isikhan and Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar travelled to the region to inspect the site and oversee response efforts. Health Minister Kemal Memisoglu was also scheduled to visit Izmir.
Authorities confirmed that no arrests had been made while the judicial and administrative inquiries remained ongoing at the plant.
