Space Industry and Business News  
MILTECH
12 dead after blasts at Kazakhstan arms depot
By Dana RYSMUKHAMEDOVA
Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan (AFP) Aug 27, 2021

stock image only

The death toll following explosions at an arms depot in southern Kazakhstan rose to 12 on Friday, the Central Asian country's emergencies ministry said.

A search had uncovered the bodies of a further three staff who were helping to put out the fire that began on Thursday evening, spokesman Talgat Uali said.

Around 50 staff from the emergencies ministry had suffered injuries during the operation, he said.

"The (operation) to put the fire out continues," Uali told AFP.

The blasts occurred at a defence ministry ammunitions depot in the southern region of Jambyl, leaving scores injured and nearby villages evacuated by authorities.

A video shared on the Telegram messaging app showed a column of smoke billowing from a fire before a powerful explosion sent flames shooting out. Another video showed debris flying through the sky in long arcs as the fire raged.

The defence ministry said that a fire had broken out at the Jambyl ammunitions depot and "quickly spread to storage facilities where engineering ammunition is stored".

"The explosions stopped over time," the statement added.

Regular incidents at Kazakhstan's Soviet-era military depots have proved a headache for the government in recent years, with another depot near the southern town of Arys seeing three lethal explosions take place in the last decade.

The defence ministry noted that some of the munitions stored at the Soviet-era depot in Jambyl had been transferred from the facility in Arys, where there have been calls to resettle the town's entire population of 45,000.

At an emergency government meeting Friday, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said Kazakhstan had "systemic problems" with its ammunitions storage.

He called on authorities to investigate the disaster and provide help for the families of military personnel and rescuers who he said died "heroically in the line of duty".

- Arson probe -

The emergencies ministry said that the scattering radius of the fragments was up to two kilometres (1.25 miles).

"According to preliminary data, more than 500 tonnes of trinitrotoluene (TNT) were stored in the warehouse," the ministry said.

Defence Minister Nurlan Ermekbayev said Friday that he would leave his post over the incident if President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev accepted his resignation.

The Jambyl regional government said Friday morning that of more than 80 people who received treatment for injuries, 28 remained in hospital with six in serious condition.

But "their lives are not in danger," the statement said.

Tokayev said local residents had not been hurt during the incident.

The Jambyl authorities said more than 80 children were among those evacuated from nearby villages following the incident.

Around 1,200 people were taken to schools in Taraz, a city of over 300,000 people, which is about 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the facility.

A government commission has been set up to establish the cause of the fire, while Ermekbayev said arson was being considered as a potential trigger for the blaze.


Related Links
The latest in Military Technology for the 21st century at SpaceWar.com


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


MILTECH
Delivering next-gen biomanufacturing capability
Washington DC (SPX) Aug 26, 2021
Slow production methods and reliance on a global supply chain currently limit DoD access to critical proteins such as medical countermeasures (MCMs) (i.e. antibodies, vaccines, and clotting factors), diagnostic components, and key enzymes for producing nucleic acids. State-of-the-art protein-based MCM production calls for massive centralized infrastructure and complex pipelines that require lengthy cellular engineering, sufficient growth of cells, and intensive purification and quality control. Cu ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

MILTECH
Marines 3D-print headcap for mine clearing line charge

KyotoU to test slats of wood aboard Japan's Kibo platform on the ISS

Frontier Development Lab transforms space and earth science for NASA with Google Cloud

Global sand and gravel extraction conflicts with half of UN Sustainable Development Goals

MILTECH
Northrop Grumman demonstrates open architecture high-speed connectivity

Hughes awarded IDIQ Contract by U.S. Air Force to offer enterprise satellite networking solutions

Last Tianlian I satellite placed in orbit

China's relay satellites facilitate clear, smooth space-ground communication

MILTECH
MILTECH
Space Systems Command declares three GPS III space vehicles "Available for Launch"

Virginia company licenses NASA relative navigation technology

2nd SOPS accepts new GPS satellite

GMV develops a new maritime Galileo receiver

MILTECH
Boeing unveils first F-15QA jets for Qatar

DARPA selects teams to develop active flow control X-Plane

US mobilizes commercial airlines for Afghan exit in rare crisis measure

Russian military plane crashes during test flight, killing three

MILTECH
Promising candidates revealed for next-generation LED-based data communications

Researchers develop novel analog processor for high performance computing

LED material shines under strain

A peculiar state of matter in layers of semiconductors

MILTECH
Precipitation in central Asia shaped by sea surface temperature over tropical pacific and north Atlantic

On the trail of methane sources in Scandinavia

Protecting the ozone layer also protects Earth's ability to sequester carbon

The Congo rainforest makes its own spring rain

MILTECH
Thousands rally to 'hug' Spain's dying Mar Menor lagoon

Plastic threatens migratory species in Asia-Pacific: UN

Kuwait aims to transform 'tyre graveyard' into new city

Illegal mining on Brazil indigenous land up 500% in decade









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.