The 2004 Nosratabad fuel tanker explosion was a catastrophic incident that took place on 24 June 2004, near

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

with

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, resulting in at least 90 fatalities and 114 injuries. The disaster occurred when a petrol truck lost control and collided with a bus at the

Nosratabad Nosratabad () is a city in, and the capital of, Nosratabad District of Zahedan County, Sistan and Baluchestan province, Iran. As a village, it was the capital of Nosratabad Rural District until its capital was transferred to the village ...

police checkpoint, located about west of

Zahedan Zahedan (Balochi language, Balochi and ; ) is a city in the Central District (Zahedan County), Central District of Zahedan County, Sistan and Baluchestan province, Sistan and Baluchestan province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, th ...

Background

Iran has a high rate of road accidents, with an average of 22,000 annual fatalities at the time of the disaster. Police checkpoints, mostly present to check for drugs, are commonplace on roads in the vicinity of Zahedan, the capital of Sistan and Baluchestan province. The checkpoint at Nosratabad was situated on a sharp bend and was known for creating long queues of buses and cars, and its location and outdated inspection methods would later be criticised by Zahedan parliamentarian Hossein Ali Shahriari. Earlier in the year on 18 February 2004, a train carrying

sulphur Sulfur (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundance of the chemical ...

fertiliser A fertilizer or fertiliser is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrition, plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from Liming (soil), liming materials or other non- ...

, petrol, and

cotton wool ''Cotton Wool'' is a 2017 British drama film following the story of a 7-year-old boy (Max Vento) who cares for his mother (Leanne Best) after she has survived from a stroke, with little to no help from his older sister (Katie Quinn). The film wa ...

derailed, separated, and exploded near

Nishapur Nishapur or Neyshabur (, also ) is a city in the Central District (Nishapur County), Central District of Nishapur County, Razavi Khorasan province, Razavi Khorasan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Ni ...

, killing almost 300 people.

Incident

The petrol truck was carrying more than of petrol when it lost control and collided with an electricity pylon and then a bus at the police post, where other vehicles were waiting in line. The impact caused the truck to explode, creating a fireball that engulfed five other buses and several additional vehicles that were stopped at the checkpoint, some of which were carrying tar, further exacerbating the flames. The explosion was so intense that many of the victims were charred beyond recognition. According to the state-run

Islamic Republic News Agency The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA; , ''Xabargozâri-ye Jomhuri-ye Eslâmi'' or ), is the official news agency of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Founded in November 1934 as Pars News Agency during the time of Reza Shah, it is government-fu ...

, most of the victims were women and children who were waiting inside the buses while the men were being searched by the police outside.{{Cite web , date=2004-06-26 , title=Fuel truck-bus crash kills 90 in Iran - Taipei Times , url=https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2004/06/26/2003176604 , access-date=2023-06-19 , website=Taipei Times The victims were burnt to death due to a lack of firefighting equipment at the police station in Nosratabad. Mehran Nourbakhsh, a spokesperson for the

Iranian Red Crescent Society The Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS), officially the Red Crescent Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran () is a non-governmental humanitarian organization in Iran. Founded as the Red Lion and Sun Society in 1922, it became affiliated with t ...

, stated that 90 people had died in the blast and 114 had been injured. He added that the organization had dispatched 40 workers to the scene to provide aid.

References

2000s disasters in Iran 2004 disasters in Asia 2004 in Iran Explosions in 2004 2004 road incidents 2000s road incidents in Asia Explosions in Iran Accidental deaths in Iran History of Sistan and Baluchestan province June 2004 in Iran Tank truck explosions 2004 industrial disasters Road incidents in Iran

Background

Incident

See also

References