Gurdaspur: Explosion In Firecracker Factory Kills 19

By FnF Correspondent | PUBLISHED: 04, Sep 2019, 20:35 pm IST | UPDATED: 04, Sep 2019, 20:35 pm IST

GURDASPUR: At least 16 people were killed and over 30 feared trapped after a massive explosion took place at a firecracker factory in Punjab's Gurdaspur. The blast took place around 4 pm at the factory located in a residential area. Chief Minister Amarinder Singh expressed "anguished" over the loss of lives in the incident.

Of the 14 seriously injured people, four have been referred to the Amritsar government hospital, Batala Senior Medical Officer Sanjiv Bhalla said. The impact of the blast was such that a few nearby buildings were damaged.

"Deeply anguished to learn of the loss of lives due to the blast in the firecracker factory in Batala. Rescue operations are underway with the DC & SSP heading the relief efforts," he tweeted.

Rescue workers were on the job to retrieve the bodies from the badly-damaged building, an official told IANS over phone. The cause of the blast is yet to be ascertained, he added.

Gurdaspur MP Sunny Deol too expressed grief over the incident. "Saddened to hear about the news of blast in Batala factory. NDRF teams and local administration have been rushed for rescue operation," Deol said in his tweet.

Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) have been deployed for the rescue operation.

Senior officials of the district administration and police have reached the spot to take stock of the situation.