Weapons depot explosion kills 76 and injures hundreds more

MAPUTO , 23 March 2007 (IRIN) - A series of explosions at a military weapons depot in the Mozambican capital, Maputo, late on Thursday afternoon showered rockets and other ballistic debris into densely populated poor neighbourhoods, killing at least 76 people, wounding hundreds more, and sending thousands of residents fleeing from their homes.

The blasts began at about 4 p.m. and grew in intensity for six hours, sending concussive gusts, which were felt 10km away in downtown Maputo, and shockwaves that shattered windows in buildings as far as 25km away. It is believed that hundreds of tonnes of decaying munitions went up in flames, sending columns of fire hundreds of feet into the air.