Burundi military says 13 people killed in military depot explosion

Calm is returning Burundi's economic capital, Bujumbura as the investigation into series of explosions at a military base there continues.

Tuesday's explosion left at least 13 people dead and 57 others injured. Authorities say an electrical short circuit triggered a fire, and later, explosions at a ammunition depot. The explosions sent projectiles raining across the city for hours. The force of the explosions reverberated across the lakeside capital, shattering homes, destroying vehicles and reducing parts of the base to charred wreckage.

"Houses were damaged in various neighborhoods as well as private vehicles. Military equipment and facilities burned and were destroyed," army spokesperson Gaspard Baratuza said in a statement Wednesday. He confirmed that all those killed were civilians, while three soldiers were among the wounded.

For residents living near the base, the night unfolded in prolonged terror.

"There was about six hours of projectiles flying overhead and landing randomly," one resident said, declining to be identified. "We just had to shelter where we were."

In the Musaga neighborhood, close to the site of the explosion, another resident described the chaos as people fled in panic. 

"After a short while I came to know she was violently hit by a bomb," the resident said, recounting how a young woman collapsed as she tried to escape.

Authorities sought to reassure a shaken public as details of the incident emerged. Gaspard Baratuza said there had been no attack on the military camp, urging residents not to panic despite the scale of the explosions, which also cut power in the camp and surrounding areas.

"We ask residents of the Gasekebuye, Kanyosha, Kinindo areas and surrounding neighborhoods to remain calm and not give in to panic," Baratuza said.

Edited by CGTN Africa reporter Marion Gachuhi