At least 17 people have died and more than 400 have been injured in a series of explosions near a military barracks in Equatorial Guinea.

The country's president, TEODORO OBIANG NGUEMA said the blasts in the main city of Bata were caused by "negligence" around the storage of dynamite at the barracks.

President NGUEMA said in a statement that the impact of the explosion "caused damage in almost all the houses and buildings in Bata", and called for international aid.

In a series of tweets, the health ministry said 420 injured people were being treated in hospitals, and called for volunteer health workers to go to Bata Regional Hospital.