Kolkata: Three persons, including a minor, have been killed in a major explosion at a fireworks factory located in Maheshtala in South 24 Parganas district on Monday evening.
The deceased have been identified as Lipika Hati (52), Santanu Hati (22) and Alo Das (17).
Lipika Hati was the owner of the said fireworks factory while Santanu Hati was her son. Alo Das was a member of the family residing adjacent to the fireworks factory. The latter had appeared for the Class X board exams this year.
The area is quite congested and because of the strong winds blowing, the fire had spread quickly. Fire tenders and police personnel from Maheshtala and Budge Budge had immediately rushed to the spot.
As per the latest information given by state Fire Services Minister Sujit Basu, the fire has been brought under control.
Local people claimed that the fireworks factory was illegally set up there, considering that there is no provision for setting up such a hazardous unit in such a congested place. However, there had been no communication from the local administration on this count till the time of filing this report.
The charred bodies of the victims have been sent to a local hospital for post-mortem.
(IANS)
