A powerful explosion tore through the Misrata ammunition depot on Friday evening, sending rockets and artillery shells flying into nearby homes and farmland.
The blast triggered hours of secondary detonations as munitions stored at the facility exploded one after another, forcing residents to flee the area.
The blast struck a weapons and ammunition facility in the Al-Sikt area, roughly 200 kilometres east of Tripoli. Residents said the first explosion at the depot set off a chain of secondary blasts as rockets, artillery rounds and tank shells stored inside detonated one after another.
Local media reported that explosions at the ammunition depot continued for hours after the initial blast. Some of the flying debris landed in residential streets and farmland close to the facility, and locals described scenes of panic as families fled their homes.
Residents living near the Misrata ammunition depot said they could hear secondary explosions for several hours after the initial blast.
Property in the area was damaged, though the full extent has not yet been assessed. Authorities shut down roads leading to the Misrata ammunition depot as a safety measure while emergency crews worked to bring the situation under control.
According to Xinhua, Libya’s Security Media Department said the acting interior minister of the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity had ordered an immediate response to the blast, which it described as occurring at a hangar storing ammunition and weapons in Al-Sikt. Security teams were sent to Misrata ammunition depot to inspect the area and begin collecting debris scattered by the explosion, the department said.
The facility is reportedly tied to the Al-I’sar Battalion, whose headquarters sits in the nearby Al-Ghiran area, close to Al-Sakt prison. Anadolu Agency, citing Libyan outlets including Al-Marsad and Libya Press, reported that witnesses saw shells and rockets thrown out of the depot as fires continued to burn inside.
No deaths or injuries had been confirmed at local hospitals by the time of this report. Officials have not said what caused the explosion at the ammunition depot, and it remains unclear whether it was an accident, a technical fault, or something else entirely.
This is not the first time an ammunition depot in Misrata has gone up in flames. The city has a long history of storing weapons close to residential neighbourhoods, a legacy of Libya’s fractured post-2011 security landscape, where armed groups often keep arsenals near populated areas rather than in secured military bases.
Friday’s incident is likely to reignite calls from residents for depots like this one to be relocated away from homes, farms and schools. Similar explosions at ammunition stores elsewhere in Libya have previously left dozens dead, a reminder of how dangerous it is to keep live munitions in built-up areas.
Authorities say the situation around the Misrata ammunition depot has calmed for now, though security teams remain on the ground surveying the site. AfricanQuarters.co will update this story as more details emerge.
