One killed in explosion at fuel terminal in Rotterdam's Europoort

An explosion occurred at around 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, 13 August, at an oil facility in the Europoort industrial area of the port of Rotterdam, Europe's largest port, killing one person and injuring several others.

Injured people were taken to hospital, police said. Forensic investigators and representatives of the Dutch labour inspectorate were dispatched to the scene to examine the cause. A damaged wall and visible signs of an explosion on a storage tank could be seen at the site as emergency services worked to secure the area.

Police spokesperson Daan Valkenburg said investigators were still weighing all possible causes and had not reached any conclusions. Dutch broadcaster NOS reported that a maintenance crew had been working on a section of pipes at the time of the blast, though authorities have not confirmed this account.

Facility operator and separate incident

The affected facility is run by Gunvor Energy, which operates a refinery and fuel terminal at the port. Separately on Thursday, a power failure hit another part of the port after a transformer caught fire, forcing several companies to halt operations and evacuate staff. Emergency services later clarified that this blackout was unrelated to the explosion. Police said their investigation would determine exactly what happened.