ALIAGA (IZMIR), Nov 9 — At least six people were killed and eight others were still missing after a major explosion and fire at the Habas iron and steel manufacturing plant in the Aliaga district of Izmir province in western Turkey on Monday, officials said, as search and rescue teams continued trying to reach workers trapped under rubble.

Source: Reuters via SRN News

The explosion took place at around noon local time (0900 GMT) at the plant in the coastal province of Izmir. According to initial findings reported by the Izmir governor's office, a ceiling crane snapped and fell into an arc furnace while liquid steel was being cast, triggering the blast.

Source: Sky News via Q Radio

The toll rose through the afternoon. Reuters, citing the governor's office, first reported three people dead, 10 missing and 14 injured, three of them in a serious condition, with the injured taken to hospitals in the region. In a later update, officials said at least six people had died, eight were missing and 13 had been injured. Izmir Mayor Cemil Tugay said the exact number of casualties could only be confirmed once the debris has been cleared.

Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said emergency services, including firefighters and search and rescue teams, had coordinated a response. In a post on X, he said the injured had been taken to hospitals and their health was being closely monitored, and that efforts to reach the remaining eight people trapped under the rubble were ongoing.

Television footage broadcast by local stations showed large plumes of grey dust rising above the plant after the blast, Reuters reported. The governor's office said an investigation into the incident was under way. The exact circumstances, beyond the initial finding about the crane and the arc furnace, have not yet been officially established.

The blast came on the first day of the COP31 climate summit in Antalya, on Turkey's Mediterranean coast, where world leaders and activists had gathered, Sky News noted. Rescue work at Aliaga was continuing on Monday afternoon, and officials said casualty figures may change as the rubble is cleared.