Chad: Deadly blaze at ammunition depot in N’Djamena

An unknown number of people have been killed and injured after a huge fire broke out at an ammunition depot in Chad, causing major explosions, senior government ministers have said.

Foreign Minister Abderaman Koulamallah said the blaze happened at a military depot in the Goudji area of the capital, N’Djamena.

President Mahamat Idriss Déby sent his condolences to the victims and their families, without specifying the number of casualties.

Video footage, which has not been verified by the BBC, shows blasts lighting up the night sky.

Witnesses said they could be heard miles away.

The weapons depot in Goudji is the country’s main arsenal and is in the north of the city near the military headquarters, a French army base and the airport.

Journalists working for the AFP news agency said the blaze caused weapons to fire into the air.

There were “explosions of ammunition of all calibres”, a French official, who requested anonymity, also told the agency.

A resident told the Reuters news agency that he saw three wounded people on the street, while another said his neighbour was killed.

“Loud blasts woke us up,” Moustapha Adoum Mahamat said.

“Our house was shaking as if someone were shooting at us. Then we saw a big fire at the military camp and smoke and things exploding in the air,” he said.

“We could see artillery fly over us.”

Mr Koulamallah, the foreign minister and government spokesman, urged the public to remain calm after the explosions.

President Déby wrote on Facebook after midnight: “Peace to the souls of the victims, sincere condolences to the grieving families and a speedy recovery to the wounded.”

The cause of the fire is not yet known, and the president has promised an investigation.