Fatalities reported as fire at Chad military ammunition depot triggers blasts

A fire at a military ammunition depot in Chad's capital N'Djamena triggered a series of blasts on Tuesday night, Foreign Affairs Minister Koulamallah Abderaman said, with witnesses saying several people were killed and wounded.

The fire “caused human and material damage,” President Mahamat Deby posted on Facebook. “Peace to the souls of the victims, sincere condolences to the bereaved families and quick recovery to the injured.”

The cause of the fire was not immediately clear, and the president said an investigation would be conducted.

The media posted images of spent artillery shells that fell into people's homes.

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A fire at a military ammunition depot near N'Djamena's airport in Chad causes explosions, resulting in deaths and injuries, according to President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno pic.twitter.com/NcrXfieOU7

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A resident of a neighbourhood near the depot said he saw wounded people on the street, two of which were rushed to hospital on motorbikes.

Another resident said his neighbour, a shopkeeper, was killed after a shell hit him.

"Loud blasts woke us up," resident Moustapha Adoum Mahamat told Reuters via telephone.

"Our house was shaking as if someone were shooting at us. Then we saw a big fire at the military camp and smoke and things exploding in the air," he said. "We could see artillery fly over us."

A Reuters witness saw flames and heard explosions for about an hour and said smoke was spreading around the city.

The fire broke out just a few kilometres away from Chad's main international airport, which authorities said was not affected.