Eight killed in ordnance factory blast in Bhandara

EIGHT people were killed after a blast at the ordnance factory in Maharashtra's Bhandara district on Friday, union minister Nitin Gadkari said.

“As per preliminary information, seven persons have been injured in the blast,” Gadkari told reporters in Nagpur.

A senior district official said the blast caused the roof of the unit to collapse. Search and rescue efforts were underway at the site, he said.

Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had earlier said that 13 to 14 workers were stuck at the site.

According to police and district authorities, the explosion occurred in the LTP section of the ordnance factory in the Jawahar Nagar area around 10.30 am.

The factory manufactures propellants and explosives, according to local media.

District Collector Sanjay Kolte said 13 to 14 people were working in the unit at the time of the incident.

He said six people were brought out, and one of them died, while the others were undergoing treatment at a hospital.

Defence minister Rajnath Singh expressed sadness over the blast and offered condolences to the families of the deceased and prayed for the quick recovery of the injured.

“The rescue teams are deployed at the site. All efforts are being made to provide assistance to those who are affected,” Rajnath Singh wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Industrial disasters are common in India, with experts blaming poor planning and lax enforcement of safety rules.

Nine workers were killed in a 2023 blast at a factory in Maharashtra that manufactured drones and explosives. (Agencies)