Turkish police station blast: 1 dead, several injured during vehicle repair in Diyarbakir (VIDEOS)
An explosion in a police building in the Turkish city of Diyarbakir killed one person and wounded several others. It’s understood the blast happened in a workshop of a police compound during the repair of an armoured vehicle.
The large blast caused the police building’s roof to collapse, according to Reuters, but it’s not yet known what exactly caused the explosion on Tuesday morning.
Diyarbakır merkez Bağlar ilçesinde patlama meydana geldi. Birçok ambulans patlama yerine sevk edildi. (dihaber) pic.twitter.com/NMUCyVoWU2
— Kızıl Deklanşör (@KLobje) April 11, 2017
Turkey’s Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu confirmed the blast followed mechanical work being carried out in a police workshop near the Police Department’s HQ and appeared to be an accident.
"The blast was in a part of the building for riot police, where maintenance is carried out on vehicles," Soylu told CNN Turk, reports Reuters. "At the moment, it seems there is no outside interference, and the explosion came from the vehicle under repair. One person is trapped under the wreckage.”
Diyarbakır Bağlar ilçesinde büyük bir patlama yaşandı... ses her alandan duyulu... pic.twitter.com/QGqe0Uv6db
— tijda beritan (@Beritan_Tijda) April 11, 2017
First footage of #Diyarbakir blast, targeted a Police station. pic.twitter.com/84M6tOhbOJ
— Barzan Sadiq (@BarzanSadiq) April 11, 2017
Pictures of huge plumes of smoke over the largely Kurdish city’s residential district of Balgar were shared by locals online.
Diyarbakır İl Emn.Müd.Ek Binası'nda meydana gelen patlamanın ardından olay yerine hızla ulaşan AFAD ekipleri çalışmalarını sürdürüyorlar. pic.twitter.com/uKyhLadwFK
— AFAD (@AFADBaskanlik) April 11, 2017
Security footage shared online shows the moment of the explosion.
#Diyarbakır Bağlar'da polis okulu içinde patlama meydana geldi.1'i ağır 4 yaralı var. Patlamaya panzer tamirinin neden olduğu belirtildi. pic.twitter.com/JjePpbHZJv
— Hergele Postası (@HergelePostasi) April 11, 2017
Photos from the scene show emergency workers wading through the vast amount of rubble in search of trapped persons.
Diyarbakır'ın Bağlar ilçesindeki Polis Okulu içinde patlama pic.twitter.com/jzstjjpm4L
— Vahapts (@avahaptas) April 11, 2017
Police issued a warning to those in the vicinity of the explosion to keep all windows and doors shut due to a potential gas leak, according to local media.