Criminal probe opened into deadly Kazakh blast

NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan - Kazakhstan's president said on Tuesday a criminal investigation has been opened into a munitions depot blast that killed two people and left 165 injured in a town in the south of the country.

Authorities evacuated Arys, a town of 44,000 people, following Monday's blast. The defense ministry said a fire caused the ammunition to explode.

Newly-elected President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Tuesday visited the injured at a hospital in Shymkent, a city close to Arys.

The blasts occurred at a military base near Arys in the former Soviet republic's southern Turkestan province, which houses a large Soviet-era storage facility for explosive munitions.

Regional governor Umirzak Shukeyev said Arys had been almost completely evacuated on Monday but warned explosions at the depot might continue for several days.

"The scale (of fires) is very large and this could go on for a few days," Shukeyev said.

Three people were arrested for looting in Arys, Interior Minister Erlan Turgumbayev said.

The cause of the fire which led to the explosions was unclear. Similar incidents in the area, in 2009, 2014 and 2015, were blamed on negligence and failure to observe safety regulations.

Social media users shared videos of residents fleeing the area, where properties were damaged, as huge plumes of smoke rose in the background.

Kazakhstan's Prime Minister Askar Mamin said on Tuesday during a government meeting that "one civilian and one serviceman" were killed and 165 people had sought treatment.

Tokayev said in a tweet he had ordered the interior and defense ministries to prevent further explosions and pledged perpetrators would be "prosecuted under the law".

"A criminal case has been opened," he said.

He pledged the government would restore the town and compensate victims.

Afp - Reuters

(China Daily 06/26/2019 page11)