Death toll in Equatorial Guinea rises to 98

The death toll in a series of explosions in Equatorial Guinea on Sunday rose to 98, officials said.

Another 615 people were injured, of whom 299 are still in the hospital.

The explosions hit a military base in the country’s main city, Bata. Authorities blame poorly stored dynamite along with burning stubble by nearby farmers.

The death toll, updated after volunteers spent Monday looking for bodies in the wreckage, is more than three times the initial estimate of 31.

Three young children were found alive and taken to the hospital.

Almost all buildings and houses in the city have suffered “major damage,” said President Teodoro Obiang Nguema.

In a note, President Obiang Nguema said the explosions were caused “by the neglect of a unit charged with caring for and protecting the dynamite and explosives stockpiles” at the Nkoantoma military base.

He said the base “caught fire because neighboring farmers cleared agricultural land by setting it on fire, leading to the explosion.” The president asked for international help.

In a series of tweets, the health ministry called on voluntary health professionals to go to Hospital Regional de Bata and for urgent blood donations. The ministry said mental health teams were also being deployed to help victims.

Some hospitals are overwhelmed with the number of inpatients, state TV reported. He broadcast images of injured people lying on the floor of a crowded hospital.

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The video of the aftermath of the explosions showed a chaotic scene with afflicted people fleeing while smoke hung over the area.

One resident told the AFP news agency: “We didn’t sleep all night. The houses were burning all night and we heard small explosions.”

Another described how his uncle had found the burned bodies of five members of his family.

The only opposition party, CPDS, described the explosions as “the biggest humanitarian catastrophe in the history of Equatorial Guinea” and asked Spain, France and the United States to send aid, including rescue workers, doctors and medicines.

Spain’s Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez tweeted on Monday that Spain “will proceed with the immediate dispatch of a shipment of humanitarian aid”.

Five things about Equatorial Guinea:

• The only Spanish-speaking country in Africa, it gained independence from Spain in 1968

• It is divided between the continent and an island, where the capital Malabo is located

• President Obiang Nguema, in power since 1979, has been repeatedly accused of human rights violations

• Western officials and NGOs have also accused the president and his family of massive corruption

• Despite the wealth in oil and gas, 76% of its 1.5 million inhabitants live in poverty, according to the UN and the World Bank.