Kasargod: Over 150 people including women and children were injured in a fireworks accident during the Anjuambalam Veerarkav Temple festival near Neeleswaram here on Monday midnight, police said. Ten of them are in critical condition.
Seven people among those injured critically are currently on ventilators.
The injured have been taken to various hospitals in Kasargod, Kannur, and Mangaluru: 16 at Kanhangad District Hospital, 10 at Sanjeevani Hospital in Kanhangad, 5 at Pariyaram Medical College, 17 at Aishal Hospital in Kanhangad, 3 at Arimala Hospital in Kanhangad, 18 at MIMS Kannur, 2 at MIMS Kozhikode, 2 at KAH in Cheruvathur, 2 at Mansoor Hospital in Kanhangad, 18 at AJ Medical College in Mangaluru, 1 at Deepa Hospital in Kanhangad, and 1 at Baby Memorial Hospital.
District Collector Inbasekar K, on Tuesday, said that those who were seriously injured had 80 per cent burns.
“The cause of the accident is being ascertained. Samples have been collected from the site. A case was lodged,” he said.
He further said that according to a preliminary probe, the fireworks storage facility and the place where the crackers were being burst were close by.
According to the police, it is suspected that the accident occurred when the fireworks storage facility near Veerarkavu Temple caught fire.
According to eyewitness accounts, a misfired cracker struck the sheet-paved fireworks storage facility causing a huge explosion.
A large number of people including women and children had gathered near the facility to see the auspicious ‘Theyyam’ ritual. Some local media reports also say that women and children were inside the fireworks storage facility when it exploded.
“A large number of people were present near the shed. It was really difficult for them to run away to safety when the explosion happened,” PTI reported an eyewitness as saying.
Most of the injured suffered burns on their faces and hands.
“The safety precautions were not taken. The requirement of maintaining a minimum distance of 100 meters between the two was not followed. No permission was taken either for storage of fireworks,” the collector said.
According to local media reports, people were also injured in a stampede-like situation that followed as the panic-struck crowd tried to escape from the fire.
A case has been registered against eight people in connection with the incident. The temple’s office bearers including the president and secretary have been taken into custody.
“A case was registered into the incident, and eight persons are booked. All those booked are temple committee members,” a senior police officer told PTI.
Top district administration officials, including the collector and District Police Chief Shilpa D rushed to the accident site and oversaw the rescue operation.
Kasargod MP Rajmohan Unnithan called for a detailed investigation into the incident.
Congress leader and Wayanad by-poll candidate Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that she is “disturbed” by the incident and urged her party workers to “mobilise and support relief efforts.”
“Deeply disturbed by the tragic firecracker blast in Kasargod, which has left hundreds injured, many in critical condition. My thoughts and prayers are with those wounded and their families during this difficult time. I urge all INC workers to mobilise and support relief efforts wholeheartedly. Wishing for the swift and full recovery of all affected,” Priyanka said in a post on ‘X’.
