©Georg Eiermann via Unsplash
At least one person was killed in an explosion at Rotterdam’s Europoort on Thursday. Several others were injured. The incident occurred shortly after noon on Moezelweg, on the grounds of Gunvor Energy Rotterdam.
According to Gunvor, a contracted maintenance crew was working on a tank. An incident is reported to have occurred during that work. Regional media report that the crew was disconnecting pipes and that visible signs of the explosion can be seen on a storage tank. The exact circumstances have not yet been determined.
Emergency services responded in large numbers. Several ambulances, fire trucks, and a trauma helicopter arrived at the scene. The police cordoned off the site as a crime scene and, together with other agencies, have begun an investigation into the cause of the explosion. As of Thursday afternoon, the exact number of injured and their condition were not yet fully clear. Some of the victims were reportedly taken to the hospital. The explosion occurred on a particularly busy day for the Port of Rotterdam. Earlier, several systems had failed at the ExxonMobil refinery on Botlekweg. The malfunction brought operations to a standstill, and the fire department was on site as a precaution. Flames and black smoke were also visible during the flaring of gases. In addition, a malfunction was reported on Merseyweg, and a fire broke out in a transformer station on the Maasvlakte. The safety region escalated the emergency response to GRIP 2, allowing various services to jointly coordinate the incidents and communications. As far as is known, there were no additional casualties resulting from the malfunctions and the fire. The authorities emphasize that it has not yet been determined whether the various incidents are related to the explosion at Gunvor. The companies involved and emergency services are investigating this separately.
Europoort is part of the Rotterdam port and industrial area, one of the largest petrochemical complexes in Europe. The site processes and stores, among other things, petroleum products, fuels, and chemicals. As a result, strict safety procedures are in place, and specialized firefighting teams are quickly deployed in the event of incidents involving tanks or pipelines.
©Georg Eiermann via Unsplash - illustrative image