Odisha: Death toll in Puri firecracker explosion rises to 8
A massive explosion occurred when huge quantities of firecrackers, kept for the celebration of Chapa Khela festival during Chandan Yatra, suddenly caught fire on Wednesday evening
The death toll in the Wednesday’s firecracker explosion in Odisha’s Puri town when a stockpile of firecrackers kept near a pond caught fire rose to eight on Saturday with five persons succumbing to their burn injuries, officials said.
Puri superintendent of police (SP) Pinak Mishra said of the five who died today, two are minors. “Almost all of them had suffered 80-100 % burn injuries. The doctors had kept them in the ICU and then ventilators. But their condition turned worse,” said Mishra, adding 22 others are undergoing treatment in different hospitals in Puri, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
On Wednesday evening, a massive explosion occurred when huge quantities of firecrackers, kept near the Narendra Pond in the town for the celebration of Chapa Khela festival during Chandan Yatra, suddenly caught fire.
“Some youths were bursting the cracker one after another when one cracker split off and landed on the pile of firecrackers, triggering a blast. Many people, including a few children standing nearby, sustained severe burn injuries in the explosion. Sparkles from exploded crackers fell on devotees who had gathered there to watch the celebration in the holy pond. Many of them jumped into the pond in desperation,” said the Puri SP. Hours later, three of the injured had succumbed to the burn injuries.
Chief minister Naveen Patnaik has ordered an inquiry into the incident and announced an ex-gratia amount of ₹4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased.
“Two more people succumbed to their injuries in hospitals, while 22 others are undergoing treatment,” he said, adding a few more people are in critical conditions. Additional chief secretary of the Revenue and Disaster Management Department, Satyabrata Sahu has started a probe into the incident. The Puri Police said it has registered a suo motu criminal case and an investigation is underway.
