Turkey Steel Factory Explosion: 17 Workers Killed, 12 Injured; Six Detained After Deadly Blast Near Izmir

November 10, 2026

Izmir: At least 17 workers were killed and 12 injured in a huge explosion at an iron and steel plant near Izmir port in Turkey on Monday.

The blast happened at the HABAŞ Demir Çelik plant in the Aliaga district. It happened as the plant was carrying out routine maintenance.

It happened as workers were replacing a boiler, but a crane fell causing materials to fall into the electric arc furnace in the plant. This caused damage to a natural gas pipe, resulting in an explosion.

The explosion caused a large fire to start in the factory, sending a huge amount of smoke into the air. Firefighters, police officers, medical workers and rescue workers arrived at the scene.

Workers feared to be trapped

The accident happened around midday as a crane was carrying a new boiler, said Governor Suleyman Elban. Some workers feared to be trapped under the debris.

HABAŞ Demir Çelik, who operate the factory, said the explosion happened at one of their electric arc furnaces during routine maintenance.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed the death toll after a cabinet meeting on Monday. He said that judicial and administrative inquiries were being carried out to find out what caused the explosion and if there was any negligence involved.

Six suspects were arrested on Tuesday

Workplace accidents have become a large issue in Turkey. The independent organisation Turkish Health and Safety Labour Watch have also spoken about how big of an issue it has become.

The factory is based in the Aliaga district of Izmir. This is an industrial area which has a large port and ship breaking industry. Old ships are broken down to make scrap metal.

Authorities are looking into the situation surrounding the explosion.