At least 47 people died and 46 others were injured in a massive explosion at a fireworks factory outside Jakarta in Indonesia on Thursday, the police said. According to reports, the fire broke out at an industrial complex in Tangerang, a satellite city of Jakarta.
IANS reported that the incident occurred at around 9 am at the factory located in Tangerang area. Following the accident, huge plumes of black smoke were sent into the air. The authorities said that the injured people were taken to nearby hospitals in Tanggerang city and a police hospital in Jakarta.
Denny Hassan, a senior official of the disaster management agency in the city, told Xinhua news agency that the cause of the fire is said to be an explosion in a pickup mini-van loaded with raw materials for fireworks.
"There are 103 workers in total at this factory, 43 are injured and being treated in three hospitals, the remains of 23 victims have been found," Nico Afinta from Jakarta police told Kompas TV.
A firefighter on the scene said that the victims had been burned beyond recognition. "Those who died are completely unrecognisable, totally burnt," Oni Sahroni told Metro TV.
Reports added that parts of the building collapsed after being affected by the fire. The witnesses also said that they heard two major blasts erupt from the site.
Toni Rustoni, the district government official told Metro TV that the factory, which is located at a part of a complex bordering residential area, had only been operating for six weeks.
With inputs from Indo-Asian News Service
