The explosion at the fuel storage facility near Stepanakert killed 20 people and wounded nearly 300. 290 people have been hospitalized, writes hackneygazette.co.uk.

It was not immediately clear what caused the blast, which happened as residents were lining up to get fuel for their cars in order to leave the region, but Nagorno-Karabakh presidential aide David Babayan said initial information suggested that sabotage was unlikely.

The majority of the victims were in “severe or extremely severe” condition, Nagorno-Karabakh human rights ombudsman Gegham Stepanyan tweeted.

Armenia’s health ministry said a helicopter brought some blast victims to Armenia on Tuesday morning, and more flights were expected.

Azerbaijani presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev said on Twitter, that hospitals in Azerbaijan were ready to treat victims, but not if any had been taken to them. Azerbaijan has sent in burn-treatment medicine and other humanitarian aid, he said.