Dar es Salaam, Tanzania - President Jakaya Kikwete has asked survivors of Wednesday night's artillery explosions, which rocked this Tanzanian commercial capital and left at least 26 people dead, to return to their homes, assuring them that the army had put the situation under control. Accidental blasts at Gongo la Mboto arms depot of the Tanzanian People's Defence Forces (TPDF) on the western fringe of the city erased 23 stores of arms and two dormitories of the barracks, but no soldier was injured.

Artillery that went off in the barracks destroyed many private houses but the damage is yet to be assessed.

'The nation has suffered a big loss,' Kikwete said Friday in a televised address, noting that the military base housed Tanzania's largest armoury.

He said 335 people were injured in the blasts and that only 35 of them were still admitted to hospitals for treatment.

'This is a national tragedy. I offer my condolences to all people who lost their loved ones in the blasts,' he said.

The president pledged full government support for the survivors to resume normal life, including compensation to owners of properties that were destroyed. In addition, he said the government would bear funeral costs for the dead

Meanwhile, the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) has expressed its regrets and condolences to Kikwete and the citizens of Tanzania, following the disaster from the explosions at the TPDF depot.

'EALA condoles with the families and relatives of those who lost their loved ones and prays that they find comfort during this period of grief,' the Assembly said in its condolences.

The Assembly also noted with appreciation the steps taken so far by the government  in providing shelter to the thousands of people affected, as it makes plans to accommodate all victims of the blasts.

Pana 19/02/2011