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According to the Vietnamese embassy in Saudi Arabia, the Vietnamese victims were crew members aboard the Forest 6 registered in Hong Kong on which a tanker containing toxic chlorine gas accidentally exploded.
It also left more than 250 people injured, including seven Vietnamese. Some 100 of them were still in hospital Wednesday, AFP quoted local officials as saying.
Most were being treated for the effects of breathing chlorine, a common cleaning agent that can be employed as a chemical weapon, it said.
Speaking on the phone with Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister and counterpart Ayman Al-Safadi on Wednesday, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son urged them to quickly investigate the cause of the explosion and handle post-mortem procedures for the deceased victims.
He also sought Jordanian support for the Vietnamese embassy’s efforts to assist Vietnamese citizens in need.
Jordanian officials said earlier the explosion occurred when a crane was loading tanks of chlorine aboard the ship to be transported to Djibouti and a tank containing 25 tons of the gas fell from the crane.
A video from Jordan's national television Al-Mamlaka shows the tank falling and slamming into the deck, creating a yellow cloud of gas that envelops the ship and the jetty and many people trying to flee.
