47 KILLED IN BLAST AT FIREWORKS FACTORY IN INDONESIA
Police and rescuers fear the toll could mount as the bodies were fully charred and are currently looking for more
At least 47 workers were killed and 46 others injured in a massive explosion at an Indonesian fireworks factory on Thursday, police said.
The cause of the fire is said to be an explosion in a pickup mini van loaded with raw materials for fireworks, Denny Hassan, a senior official of the disaster management agency in the city, told Xinhua news agency.
"The casualties have reached 47 now," he said.
The incident occurred at around 9 a.m. at the factory located in Tangerang area.
"The bodies were fully charred and we are currently looking for more bodies," a police officer said earlier.
"Now we are searching the scene to see whether there are any other casualties," said Doni Pratama, a rescuer from the Jakarta search and rescue office.
Pratama and several other rescuers from Jakarta have been deployed at the scene to give assistance to the local firefighters and rescuers.
The wounded have been treated at nearby hospitals in Tanggerang city and a police hospital in Jakarta.
Witnesses told local media there were two explosions, one at about 10am and another about three hours later, both of which could be heard miles away.
Harry Kurniawan, the Tangerang police chief, said the bodies were discovered by his officers when they entered the factory warehouse, the Detik news site reported. He said the death toll could rise further as many of the dozens of injured have extensive burns.
Beni Benteng, a local resident, told AFP he heard an explosion and people inside screaming for help. “My friends and I and some police officers knocked down a wall so people could escape, then the workers came out,” he said. “I saw people including women were jumping from above, oh my God.”