Evangelos Florakis Naval Base explosion
The munitions explosion at the naval base Evangelos Florakis near Zygi on the south coast of the Republic of Cyprus occurred on the early morning of 11 July 2011 and demanded 15 lives and over 60 injured. It is one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions ever raised by human hands. It was on the naval base Evangelos Florakis close to the adjacent oil - and gas-fired power plant, the most modern and largest in the country, container explodes with ammunition and had triggered a wide-ranging destruction. The incident led to several resignations of high-ranking politicians and military officers, including two ministers.
Event flow
Around four clock in the morning eyewitnesses had reported a fire at the base and subsequent explosions. The widespread destruction related base, power plant and adjacent civilian buildings. Both the commander of the Cypriot fleet and the commander of the base as well as other military personnel and fire-fighters were killed. In many parts of the country and in the capital there was after the accidental failure of the power plant loses power, since it provided half the country needs. In addition, bottlenecks occurred in the water supply. The follow-up costs were estimated at billions, only the value of the destroyed in large part oil - and gas-fired power plant was 700 million euros. Defence Minister Costas Costas Papa and the commander of the Cyprus National Guard Petros Tsalikidis came back a few hours after the announcement of the misfortune.
Political consequences
Later, the lawyer Polys Polyviou was entrusted by the government as an independent investigator without legal authority with the investigation. He was assisted by police officers, an explosives expert and a prosecutor. In its final report on October 2, 2011, he made serious allegations against the president. The call for his resignation grew louder. Christofias said the allegations of the investigation report for insubstantial and denied personal responsibility for the disaster, he remained in office.