Gas leak in Iranian refinery kills two, injures nine - state media

A gas leak at a refinery in Fars Province on Saturday resulted in the deaths of two workers and left nine others injured, state-run media outlets reported citing local officials.

"Nine of the injured were promptly transferred to hospitals in Shiraz and Zarqan with the help of emergency response teams," said Hojjatollah Rezaei, the deputy governor of Fars for political and security affairs.

He said the injured workers are fortunately in stable condition.

“The two victims suffered severe inhalation of hazardous substances, which led to suffocation and ultimately cost them their lives,” Rezaei confirmed.

The Shiraz refinery is operating without interruption, the official said, adding that an investigation into the cause of the incident is currently underway.

The Shiraz Refinery (also known as SORC) is a crude oil refinery located on the Shiraz-Isfahan road. It is designed to process 40,000 barrels of crude oil per day, equivalent to 2 million tons per year.

The required crude oil feed is supplied via a 230-kilometer, 10-inch pipeline from the Gachsaran oil fields.