One dead, one injured in ammunition explosion in Khankendi, Azerbaijan

A fatal explosion and fire broke out in a workers' residence in Azerbaijan’s city of Khankendi after the careless handling of ammunition.

Rashad Aliyev, a resident of the Absheron district born in 1983 and employed at a construction site in Khankendi and his colleague, Iskender Huseynov, who was in the room at the time, both suffered severe burns in the incident, Caliber.Az reports, citing local media.

The two men were taken to hospital, but doctors were unable to save Huseynov, who later died from his injuries.

Police detained Aliyev on suspicion of involvement in the incident and opened a criminal case.

A court later found Aliyev guilty of causing death by negligence and sentenced him to two years in prison. He will serve his sentence in a low-security correctional facility.

Rashad Aliyev reportedly discovered the ammunition round containing a gunpowder charge at the site and took it to the room where he was residing.

Some time later, while preparing to return home to the Shafag settlement in the Absheron district, Aliyev decided to take the ammunition with him.

However, because of its size, it would not fit into his bag, prompting him to attempt to cut it into smaller pieces.

He used an angle grinder to cut through the ammunition inside his room.

During the process, the gunpowder ignited, triggering an explosion and a subsequent fire.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov