Saudi Arabia Grand Prix: Fire breaks out at Jeddah oil depot ahead of F1 race weekend

The F1 said in a statement: “The position at the moment is that we are waiting for further information from the authorities on what has happened.”

A huge fire billows from an oil depot in Jeddah near the F1 circuit

A fire erupted at an oil depot in Jeddah on Friday ahead of the F1 Grand Prix race scheduled to take place in the Saudi city, with Yemen’s Houthis rebels acknowledging that they had launched a series of attacks on the kingdom.

Saudi Arabia and its state-run oil behemoth Saudi Aramco did not immediately acknowledge the blaze, though it appeared to be centered on the same fuel depot that the Houthis attacked in recent days.

A large black smoke cloud could be seen from the F1 track.

The F1 said in a statement: “The position at the moment is that we are waiting for further information from the authorities on what has happened.”

The al-Masirah satellite news channel run by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who did not immediately claim to be behind the fire, said it would release further details about their attacks.

More to follow….

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