Over 150 people were injured and eight others critical in a fireworks accident that erupted late Monday during a temple festival near Neeleswaram in Kerala's Kasaragod.
The mishap occurred around midnight when a storage facility containing fireworks near the Veerarkavu Temple caught fire, triggering a powerful explosion that injured numerous bystanders, among them women and children who had gathered to watch the Theyyam performance.
Following the incident, the injured were rushed to hospitals in Kasaragod, Kannur, Mangaluru, and the Government Medical College Hospital in Pariyaram, Kannur. Senior district officials, including the collector and the district police chief, have reached the site to assess the situation.
Authorities have launched an investigation to determine the exact cause of the explosion, while the local community is actively providing support to the victims and their families.