At least one person was killed and 12 injured, two of them critically, on August 7 after a grain silo explosion near the port of Derince in western Türkiye.
An employee succumbed to his injuries on August 9, two days after being wounded in the explosion, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported. Ekrem Kalkan, 20, died at an Istanbul hospital, the report said.
According to reports, 15,000 tons of grain were damaged when the explosion impacted 13 of the 60 silos at the site of the Turkish Grain Board.
The silos have the capacity to hold 95,000 tons of grains. There were 75,000 tons stored when the explosion took place, the directorate’s statement said.
An initial evaluation of the explosion showed the explosion was caused by "wheat dust compression during the transfer of wheat from a ship to the silo," said Serdar Yavuz, the governor of Kocaeli province.
According to reports, the explosion occurred at 2:40 p.m. local time and is under investigation. At least four people were inside the warehouse at the time of the explosion. Three of the injured were hospitalized in serious condition. All personnel have been accounted for. The Transport Ministry said no ships were affected.
On July 26, nine people were killed and dozens injured after a grain silo explosion in at C.Vale agricultural cooperative in Palotina, Brazil.
