Three people, including a minor, were killed in a massive fire that broke out at an illegal firecracker godown in Nandrampur Daspara area under Budge Budge police station area of South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal on Sunday.
The fire broke out on the second floor of the two-storey house around 7.40 pm. Locals said they heard an explosion after which the fire spread to the second floor of the house. All the three victims are women and members of the same family.
The women were inside the house at the time of the accident. Officials from the Bajaj police station seized firecrackers from a warehouse about 50 meters away from the house where the incident took place. The area is known for making crackers illegally.
A fire official present at the spot said that the contents of the house were found and it was difficult to say with certainty whether it was a fireworks factory or a house.
The incident took place five days after a blast at an illegal firecracker manufacturing unit in Kharikul village of Purba Medinipur district, in which 11 people were killed. The local people of Khadikul claimed that illegal bombs were made in the village under the guise of making firecrackers.
In both the incidents, majority of the victims are women.