AMSTERDAM, Aug 13 (Reuters) – An explosion at the Netherlands’ Rotterdam port has caused one death and wounded several others, a Rotterdam police spokesperson said on Thursday, adding that the cause of the explosion was still unclear and was currently being investigated.
“An explosion occurred on the Moezelweg (road) around 11:30 a.m. (0930 GMT). We are investigating how this happened”, Rotterdam police said in a post on X.
“The crime scene has been cordoned off.”
Simultaneously, Gunvor Energy, which operates oil product storage tanks in the same area near the port, reported a separate “incident” during maintenance activity that had left at least several people injured on Thursday morning, a spokesperson said.
“We are cooperating with local authorities,” the spokesperson for Gunvor said.
Local media reported that there had been several power outages at Rotterdam port earlier on Thursday.
Local safety authorities and police said they were still investigating if there was a link between the power outages and the blast.
The Rotterdam port, the largest in Europe, comprises an oil refinery and multiple petrochemicals facilities.
(Reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout and Inti Ladnauro; Editing by Toby Chopra)
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