Big explosion near Iran's capital Tehran – defence ministry

An explosion took place at an Iranian gas storage facility in an area which houses a sensitive military site near the capital Tehran, a defence ministry spokesman told state TV on Friday.

The explosion took place in the "public area" of Parchin, said the spokesman, Davoud Abdi, as opposed to the military site, where Western security services believe Tehran carried out tests relevant to nuclear bomb detonations more than a decade ago. Iran has denied this.

Abdi said the fire was brought under control and there were no casualties.

He did not give any information about the cause of the blast.

Footage shared on social media showed a bright orange flash followed by a large plume of smoke.

Investigation launched

Tehran Deputy Governor Hamid Reza Goudarzi said an investigation has been launched.

Meanwhile, it was also reported that half of Shiraz city in Fars province has plunged into darkness following an explosion at a power station.

“As a result of the fire at one of Shiraz’s main power stations, some parts of the city remain in darkness,” Shiraz Islamic City Council spokesperson Saeid Nazeri told Mehr News Agency.

Nazeri said the fire has been extinguished and work on restoring power is being carried out.

Shiraz Fire Marshal Muhammad Hadi Khan also said the fire was caused by the explosion.

Khan said the incident occurred at 1851GMT.

He said no casualties have been reported, while the reason behind it is being investigated.