17 February 2011 Last updated at 11:34 GMT
Smoke from the blasts could still be seen on Thursday morning drifting over the military base
At least 32 people have been killed in explosions after an accident at an army base in Tanzania's commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, officials say.
The multiple blasts from various arms depots lasted several hours at the Gongola Mboto military base.The city's airport was reported to have been closed after the blasts, the British Foreign Office said.
Residents were encouraged to stay inside their homes and away from windows after the explosions.
Debris was hurled across the city and army chief of staff Gen Abdurahman Shimbo said 32 people had died, most of them residents in neighbouring areas.
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Panic “Start Quote
End Quote Abdurahman Shimbo Army chief of staffWe are asking the residents around that area if they see or come across a bomb not to touch it but inform us”
Earlier Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda said 17 bodies had been recovered.
Mr Pinda said the explosions had started in one arms depot before spreading to others in the camp. Army spokesman Lt Col Kapambala Mgawe told AP news agency that the explosions were accidental.
By Thursday morning, 23 munitions depots had been destroyed, along with two residential houses and a secondary school.
The BBC's Josphat Mwanzi in Dar es Salaam says the blasts caused panic among city residents overnight because there was no clear information about what was happening.
"My neighbour's house was struck by debris from a rocket propelled grenade. Luckily, no-one was injured because we were told to evacuate our homes," said Hassan Kondo told Reuters news agency.
Mr Pinda told the National Assembly that at least 4,000 people were sheltering at the National Stadium, and warned the death toll could increase.
"We are asking the residents around that area if they see or come across a bomb not to touch it but inform us," Gen Shimbo told the BBC.
The British Foreign Office said police had set up an evacuation centre accepting those within a 10km (six miles) radius of the explosion site.
President Jakaya Kikwete is expected to inspect the damage at the military base on Thursday.
Our reporter says explosions at an ammunition depot at Mbagala army base near Dar es Salaam in the spring of 2009 killed more than 20 people, including five army officers.
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