Nigerians missing after blasts

LAGOS, Nigeria (CNN) -- Police were trying to reunite families separated during the evacuation of a Nigerian army compound where an accidental fire set off a series of explosions on Sunday.

Parents were reporting missing children, and lost children were looking for their parents, Lagos Police Commissioner Mike Okiro said.

Soldiers and their families, many of them now homeless, were spending the night outdoors. There was no word on casualties.

Earlier on Sunday, a series of loud explosions panicked people in this coastal city and set off rumours of a possible attack or a coup. The government moved quickly to quell those reports.

A CNN source in the city reported hearing at least 10 explosions during a 30-minute period.

The explosions came from the direction of the airport, she said. There was no immediate confirmation on what caused the blasts.

Panicked residents fled as the first explosion was heard shortly before 6 p.m. near military barracks in the neighbourhood of Oshodi.

The blasts shattered the windows at the international airport about five miles to the south, The Associated Press reported.

Reuters news agency quoted a military source as saying a fire at an army ammunition dump was to blame for the explosions.