At least 20 people have been killed and 600 wounded at a military base in Equatorial Guinea

President Theodore Obiang Nuema said the explosions were out of control and “negligently stored ammunition, dynamite and ammunition” at the Nkoa Ntoma military base.

– A rapid fire carried out by farmers in nearby fields erupted in warehouses, Obiang Nuema said in a statement.

The death toll was at least 20 and at least 600 people were injured, the defense ministry said. The victims included both soldiers and civilians.

Major damage

Images shared on social media showed large smoke clouds rolling in from the scene. Phone connections and the internet were reportedly broken, and patients flocked to hospitals.

The DVGE has pictures of collapsed buildings and injured people lying on the floor of a hospital.

“We heard the explosion, but we do not know what is happening,” local Theodoro Nuema told AFP.

Camp houses, among other areas, areas of Army Special Forces and Auxiliary Forces.

Asking for international help

Obi-Wan Nuema asks for international help after Sunday’s crash, which is already happening at the requested time. Equatorial Guinea is “facing an economic crisis caused by falling oil prices and the corona epidemic,” the president said.

Of the 1.4 million people in Equatorial Guinea, about 800,000 live in Pata. Most of them live in poverty despite the country’s oil wealth.

Theodore Obiang Nuema, 78, has ruled Equatorial Guinea for nearly 42 years.

Television footage shows his son, Theodoro Nuema Obiang Mangu, who is vice-president in charge of security and safety, inspecting the damage caused by the explosion.