Odisha firecracker factory explosion toll increases to 10

BHUBANESWAR : The death toll in the explosion at an illegal firecracker factory in Odisha’s Balasore district rose to 10 today with four more persons succumbing to burn injuries, officials said.

The massive explosion at the illegal firecracker factory at Bahabalpur had claimed the lives of six persons andleft nine seriously injured last night.

The injured were shifted to Sriram Chandra Bhanja (SCB) Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack last night, officials said.

Nine persons injured in the explosion were received at our hospital.

Out of them, four persons with critical burn died during treatment, Superintendent of SCB Medical College and Hospital, Prof (Dr) Shyama Kanungo, said.

Five patients, who were critically injured were undergoing treatment at the hospital, Kanungo said.

A medical board comprising specialists from different departments, including surgery and plastic surgery, has been formed to ensure proper treatment for the five injured persons, whose condition is highly critical, officials said.

In the aftermath of the explosion at the illegal cracker manufacturing unit, Director General of Police (DGP) R P Sharma suspended Santosh Behera, the Inspector In-Charge of Bahabalapur marine police station, for dereliction of duty.

The explosion took place last evening when firecrackers were being made in the house at Bahabalpur, around 12 km from the district headquarters town of Balasore.

Six persons, whose bodies were recovered, had died on the spot, Balasore District Collector Pramod Kumar Das said.

“The crackers were being made in an unauthorised manner without any legal license,” Das said.