On a Monday around midday, the ground trembled in Aliaga, an industrial district on Turkey's Aegean coast north of Izmir, where the Habas Demir Celik steel plant was struck by an explosion that many first mistook for an earthquake. Seventeen workers are now known to have died and twelve more were hurt, and the work of counting and searching is not yet finished, since some people may still lie beneath the wreckage. Officials point to a crane that collapsed while carrying a replacement boiler, sending material into a furnace, while the company describes the moment as part of scheduled maintenanc
Explosion at Turkish steel plant near Izmir kills at least 17 workers
At least 17 workers were killed and 12 injured, with others possibly still trapped under rubble.
One person initially believed an earthquake had struck.
Mark
Start with the basics. What do we actually know happened at the plant?
Mimi
An explosion at the Habas Demir Celik plant in Aliaga, near Izmir, around midday Monday. At least 17 workers are dead and 12 injured. Witnesses said the ground shook, and one thought it was an earthquake.
Mark
How did it start?
Mimi
The governor, Süleyman Elban, said a crane carrying a replacement boiler collapsed and materials dropped into a furnace below. The company said it was during scheduled maintenance on an electric arc furnace.
Luke
Those two accounts fit together, but neither is an investigation's finding. The cause is what officials and the company say so far.
Mark
The toll changed during the day, didn't it?
Mimi
Yes. Erdoğan first said 16. Health Minister Kemal Memişoğlu then said a critically injured worker had died, making it 17.
Luke
And it is described as at least 17. The governor said some people may still be under rubble, so the figure isn't settled.
Mark
What about the arrests?
Mimi
BBC's Turkish service, citing local media, reports at least five people arrested.
Luke
That is secondhand. We don't know who they are or what the charges are.
Mark
Why does the wider context matter?
Mimi
The Turkish Health and Safety Labor Watch says workplace accidents are a chronic problem in the country, and this plant is one of its leading steel producers.
Le Pouls
- A blast at the Habas Demir Celik plant in Aliaga turned a midday shift into a fireball and a column of smoke visible across the district.
- The death toll climbed from sixteen to seventeen as a critically injured worker succumbed, and families are waiting to learn whether more are trapped.
- Rescue crews are digging through rubble while officials keep open the possibility that the number of dead and injured could still rise.
- The governor blames a collapsed crane carrying a replacement boiler, while the company frames the event as maintenance work on an electric arc furnace, and the gap between those accounts is now the central tension.
- At least five arrests have reportedly been made, and investigators are working to determine what failed and who answers for it.
On a Monday around midday, the ground trembled in Aliaga, an industrial district on Turkey's Aegean coast north of Izmir, where the Habas Demir Celik steel plant was struck by an explosion that many first mistook for an earthquake. Seventeen workers are now known to have died and twelve more were hurt, and the work of counting and searching is not yet finished, since some people may still lie beneath the wreckage. Officials point to a crane that collapsed while carrying a replacement boiler, sending material into a furnace, while the company describes the moment as part of scheduled maintenance, and the question of how a routine task became a catastrophe now belongs to the investigation. It is one more chapter in a long and painful record of workplace deaths in a country where heavy industry is part of daily life.
Shortly after midday on Monday, the ground shook near the Habas Demir Celik steel plant in Aliaga, on the coast north of Izmir. An eyewitness first thought it was an earthquake. It was an explosion inside the factory, and footage showed a large fire and a tall column of smoke rising above the buildings.
At least seventeen workers have died and twelve others were injured. The number rose through the day, first reported as sixteen by President Erdoğan, then raised to seventeen by the health minister after one of the critically injured died. Officials say some people may still be under the rubble, so the count could change again.
Izmir Governor Süleyman Elban said a crane carrying a replacement boiler collapsed and dropped materials into a furnace below, setting off the blast. The company that runs the plant described the accident as occurring during scheduled maintenance on one of its electric arc furnaces. Investigations are underway, and local media report at least five arrests, though the details of who was detained have not yet been made clear.
Aliaga is a port district and one of Turkey's main shipbreaking hubs, where heavy work is routine. Independent monitors say workplace accidents remain a chronic problem in the country, and this disaster adds a heavy weight to that record.
Around midday on Monday, the ground shook near the Habas Demir Celik steel plant in Aliaga, on the coast north of Izmir in western Turkey. One eyewitness thought an earthquake had struck. It was an explosion inside the factory, and footage from the scene showed a large fire in the facility and a tall column of smoke climbing above it.
At least 17 people have died and 12 others have been injured, authorities said. All of them were workers at the plant, which is one of the country's leading steel producers. The toll rose during the day. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan first put the number of dead at 16, but Health Minister Kemal Memişoğlu later announced that one of the critically injured had died, bringing the figure to 17.
The local account of how it happened comes from Izmir Governor Süleyman Elban. He said a crane carrying a replacement boiler collapsed, and that materials fell into a furnace below, setting off the blast. The company that runs the plant gave a related but differently framed statement: the accident occurred during scheduled maintenance work on one of the plant's electric arc furnaces.
The governor also told media that some people were believed to still be under the rubble. Search and rescue operations were continuing, which means the number of dead and injured could still change.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting on Monday, Erdoğan confirmed the deaths and said investigations were under way. BBC News's Turkish service, citing local media reports, said at least five people have been arrested. The reports as relayed do not set out who those arrested are or what they face.
The plant sits in Aliaga, a district of Izmir that is a major port and one of Turkey's main shipbreaking hubs. It is an industrial area where heavy work is routine.
The Turkish Health and Safety Labor Watch, an independent civil society organisation, said workplace accidents remain a chronic problem in Turkey. This explosion adds a heavy toll to that record.
What to watch now: whether anyone is found in the rubble, whether the death toll moves again, and what the investigation concludes about the crane collapse and the maintenance work underway when it happened.
Citations marquantes
A crane carrying a replacement boiler collapsed, causing materials to fall into a furnace below; some people are believed to still be under the rubble.— Izmir Governor Süleyman Elban (paraphrased)
The accident occurred during scheduled maintenance work on one of the plant's electric arc furnaces.— Company statement (paraphrased)
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Politics & Governance