Official: Series of blasts kill 20 in Tanzania

CNN News, By Faith Karimi, February 17, 2011

Shock waves could be felt in neighborhoods more than six miles
away from the airport in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday night.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Official says she "does not think" the explosions are terror related
• Two years ago, blasts at a nearby arms depot left 29 dead
• About 200 others are wounded in the blasts at an army base
• The chain of explosions lights up the night sky late Wednesday

(CNN) -- A series of fiery blasts killed 20 people and injured dozens more at a military camp in Tanzania, authorities said early Thursday.

At least 184 others were wounded in the blasts at an army base in the main city of Dar es Salaam, said Nyancheghe Nanai, assistant director of disaster management.

Several arms and ammunition depots at the Gongola Mboto army base were destroyed, authorities said.

Residents panicked as the chain of explosions overnight Wednesday sent orange plumes into the sky. The explosions rattled neighborhoods, leveled nearby homes and forced the closure of the main international airport.

RELATED TOPICS

• Tanzania
• Dar Es Salaam

An evacuation center for the displaced has been set up at a nearby stadium, according to Nanai.

Nanai declined to discuss the cause of the blasts, but said she "does not think" they are terror-related.

"That's not my place to speculate, I'm not an expert on that, they (military) will address it when they are ready," she said.

Two years ago, blasts at a nearby arms depot left 29 dead from rocket and artillery fire, Nanai said.

Those blasts were not terror-related, she said.