Families in Uttar Pradesh lost 11 people, including eight children, after a firecracker factory exploded, leaving nearby houses flattened and dozens injured.
The blast occurred in northern India’s Uttar Pradesh state on Monday, and authorities say the youngest child killed was four years old. Several injured people were taken to hospital for treatment as rescue teams sifted through debris for survivors.
Video circulating on social media showed houses reduced to rubble and survivors covered in dust. Emergency workers deployed excavators at the site while some citizens used hand tools and stones to clear wreckage and look for those trapped beneath collapsed structures.
The immediate cause of the explosion remains unknown. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed local authorities to the scene, saying they should act "to ensure proper treatment for the injured and to reach out to the affected families to provide them every possible assistance."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote that he is "extremely saddened by the loss of lives" and said the government would provide compensation to families who lost a member and to people who were injured.
The accident marks one of several deadly firecracker factory incidents reported in India this year. The country’s firecracker industry employs hundreds of thousands of people, and international labour monitors have flagged that many of the factories operate out of homes, lack safety standards and at times employ children.
Officials at the scene have begun relief efforts, and government statements promise financial support and medical care for victims. With the cause not yet established and multiple similar accidents recorded this year, the blast renews scrutiny on safety practices in a sector that mixes informal production with dangerous materials.
