A series of explosions has ripped through an arms depot at a military base in Uzbekistan, killing at least three people and injuring about 20. The blasts happened in the mining town of Kagan near the ancient Silk Road town of Bukhara. Reports said the explosions were caused by a fire at the Soviet-era base. Soldiers fought the flames but were unable to prevent the fire reaching a store of artillery shells. "All those injured are being given necessary medical assistance," said the Uzbek state news agency UzA, citing the emergencies ministry. One woman told Reuters news agency that the explosions shattered windows in her apartment in Bukhara, about 12 km (8 miles) from the site. "I was working on my laptop when I heard a massive explosion which broke the windows. Then the sky lit up like at dawn," she said. I was working on my laptop when I heard a massive explosion which broke the windows
Bukhara resident "Hospitals are all full, many are being sent to regional hospitals." Other residents, quoted on the Russian web site Ferghana.ru, said the explosions had begun about three hours after the fire started and continued until morning. State new agencies and television did not report the incident until more than 12 hours after the fire broke out. It is unclear how much damage the explosions have caused. Ferghana.ru said a train station, a hospital and more than 20 homes were destroyed, but an official from the emergencies ministry later denied the report. Sealed off The website reported that Kagan had been sealed off, telephone lines were down and train services to the capital, Tashkent, had been cancelled. The report said the base housed weapons left over from the Soviet-Afghan War. A regional official, quoted by the Russian RIA-Novosti news agency, appealed for calm and said the fire was out. Defence Minister Ruslan Mirzayev later visited the base but the threat of further explosions was hampering the investigation, the Russian news agency Interfax reported.
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An arms depot in Uzbekistan has experienced a series of explosions today after a fire at a military base near the city of Kagan, killing at least three people. The base dates back to Soviet times.

The fire broke out late Wednesday. Although information about the accident comes from officials, one official at Uzbekistan's Emergency Situations Ministry denied the report. Local media did not report the fire for at least twelve hours after it ignited, and one local resident who spoke with the Associated Press refused to be identified for fear of retribution by the authorities. The resident was quoted as saying, "we were woken up in the middle of the night and everybody came out onto the street."

Independent Russian website Ferghana.ru reports that around 20 houses, a hospital, a railway station and a helicopter base have been destroyed, and 21 people have been injured by the blasts. The biggest explosions blew out windows in Bukhara, which is 7 miles away.

The military has stopped people returning for their belongings and has placed them in schools for now. The evacuations were conducted by soldiers who are also working to quell the flames.

It is thought that the fire started in the helicopter base and, despite efforts by soldiers, it then spread to the supplies of shells. The risk of more blasts is hampering investigatory efforts, but it is reported by a local official that the fire has been extinguished.

"I was working on my laptop when I heard a massive explosion which broke the windows. Then the sky lit up like at dawn," said one resident. The explosions started three hours after the fire initially broke out.

Kagan has a population of 50,000 and is an important part of the local rail network. The town's phone lines have become inoperative due to the blasts, and rail services from the capital, Tashkent, have been canceled. The military currently has the town sealed off.

Defense Minister Ruslan Mirzayev traveled to the site. The base was used to store unused munitions after the Soviet-Afghan War.