Fire at UAE port's chemical depot triggers blasts

DUBAI, Aug 27 (Reuters) Explosions ripped through a chemical storage depot at Jebel Ali port in the United Arab Emirates today after the second fire in two weeks at a cargo port in the Gulf Arab oil exporter, officials said.

There were no casualties and the fire had not disrupted shipping because it broke out near the entrance to Jebel Ali, the busiest container port in the Middle East. The port is regularly visited by US naval vessels.

''There were explosions, sending debris up to 300 metres in the air,'' said Rashid al-Matrooshi, head of administration at the Dubai Civil Defence Department.

The depot stored about 25,000 barrels of combustible material and bags of chemical powder, said Matrooshi.

Firefighters were battling the blaze, which broke out at 4 am (0530 IST).

Jebel Ali port is situated in Dubai, a member of the UAE federation, which is the world's sixth-largest oil exporter. Parts of Dubai were enveloped in black smoke from the fire.

The port has the UAE's second biggest oil refinery. ''There has been no effect on the refinery operations,'' said a spokesman for Emirates National Oil Company, which runs the 120,000 barrels-per-day facility.

Lieutenant John Gay, of the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, told Reuters from Bahrain: ''According to our schedule, there are no US aircraft carriers (in Jebel Ali).'' Sharjah, another UAE emirate, closed its main cargo port for seven hours last week after a fire at a lubricants warehouse.

REUTERS RN BD1145