11 dead in NGO warehouse explosion

At least 11 people were killed and 84 wounded following a massive explosion at an NGO warehouse in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad on Friday. “We have been told that the casualties included four children, four men and a woman,” area office manager for the United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA), Roxana Garmendia, told IRIN from Jalalabad. The sex of the other two victims remained unknown. According to initial reports, victims of the blast were either people living near the site or passing by. Ambulances provided by local NGOs rushed to the scene, while the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) took the lead role in providing medical care and transport for the wounded. The warehouse, which belongs to a local NGO, the Afghan Construction Logistical Unit (ACLU), reportedly contained explosives used in the construction of roads. However, as of Saturday there was no confirmation as to how the blast was triggered. Although details are still sketchy, the explosion also destroyed some 200 houses behind the warehouse, leaving many people in the surrounding area homeless. “The walls have collapsed on many of the houses making them unsafe to live in and there are children still near the area,” Garmendia said. Aid agencies in the eastern region were meeting to discuss and address the immediate needs of those affected, she added.