The fire at a temple in Kollam is heart-rending and shocking beyond words:, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and asked Health Minister J P Nadda to immediately reach the site of the tragedy.
At least 86 people were killed and several others injured when an explosion took place at the Puttingal Devi temple during a festival at Paravoor in Kerala's Kollam district at around 3 am on Sunday morning, PTI reports.
As the temple festival was on, a fireworks display had commenced at the temple precincts since midnight and hundreds of people had gathered to watch the show. As the fireworks display was coming to a close at 3 am, an explosion is suspected to have occurred at the storeroom filled with crackers, the police said.