At least 23 killed and dozens injured as fire consumes Punjab fireworks factory in India
September 9, 2019 in Latest News
At least 23 people were killed and dozens injured, some of them seriously, when a powerful blast took place inside a three-storey firecracker factory in Batala town of Punjab on September 4.
According to eyewitnesses, the blast took place around 3:30 and people came out of their homes when they heard a loud noise.
The blast was so powerful that it also damaged four nearby buildings which include a Gurudwara, a computer centre and a car garage.
Located on the Samadh road, the illegal factory was being run in a residential area.The explosion was heard kilometers away, local residents said.
Some factory workers are still believed to be trapped inside the building rubble. “The immediate priority before the district administration was to rescue the people and to provide medical aid to the people who have been injured” Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur Vipul Ujjawal said.
The factory was also in news in 2017 when one person was killed in a blast. Some local residents claimed that several complaints have been filed with the district administration in the past, asking that the factory be closed down.
Source : India Today
