At least 31 people died in multiple explosions at a military base in the port city of Bata, in Equatorial Guinea, the Central African country's health ministry confirmed in a statement on social media Monday.

More than 400 were injured and many missing under the rubble, the ministry had said after the huge blasts on Sunday.

Resident Carmen Alebeso said the scenes resembled the detonation of an atomic bomb. Alebeso told CNN she was in her car when the first blast happened at around 2 p.m. local time on Sunday.

"It was a very big noise and everyone got out of their cars and we were all in shock. We saw the typical image of an atomic bomb in front of us. It was a confusing and desperate situation, people were shouting and crying," she said.

Read more: CNN