Over 150 hurt in Kerala temple fireworks mishap; SIT to probe case

A fire accident during a Theyyam performance at a temple near Neeleswaram late last night left 154 people injured, eight of them seriously, when firecrackers stored in the vicinity exploded, the police said on Tuesday.

The incident occurred at Anjoottanbalam Veererkavu temple near Neeleswaram in this district, they said.

Three persons including two temple committee officials were arrested in connection with the incident.

The arrested were identified as Bharathan and Chandrashekharan, the secretary and president of the temple committee, and Rajesh P, the person who set off firecrackers during the time of the accident, the police said.

The case was registered under the Explosive Substance Act and various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Earlier, Kasaragod district police chief D Shilpa announced the formation of a Special Investigation Team to probe the fire accident.

The district administration said that the additional divisional magistrate has been directed to carry out an inquiry separately into the incident and submit a report.

State ministers K Rajan and P Rajeeve assured that the government would carry out a "serious and comprehensive probe" into the incident and would take necessary steps to check the recurrence of similar mishaps.

Rajeeve, who visited the accident site, said necessary action would be taken based on a report to be submitted by the district administration in this regard.

The firecrackers were burst inside the temple premises without permission, and the accident took place due to its careless handling and negligence of the accused, the police said.

The incident occurred as hundreds of people, including women and children, had gathered to get a glimpse of the Theyyam performance at the shrine.

Theyyam is a centuries-old ritualistic performance held at temples and kavus (sacred groves) in the Malabar (north Kerala) region of Kerala.

As per the latest official update, of the total 21 people admitted to the intensive care units, seven are under ventilator support, and one person is critically ill.

Revenue Minister K Rajan, who visited the injured admitted to a private hospital in nearby Kozhikode district, said a serious probe is going on at two levels-one under the district administration and the other one under the SIT led by a dysp rank officer.

"Display of fireworks is part of festivals in the state. What we need is to carry out the firework display without any danger or accident.

Necessary safety measures should be taken in this regard," the minister said.

According to eyewitnesses, sparks from firecrackers fell on the rest of the stocks stored nearby, leading to an explosion that scared away the people.

The building also suffered serious damage.

A mobile phone footage aired by television channels showed hapless people running in panic after a huge explosion and a ball of fire in the premises of the shrine.

Over 154 people sustained serious and minor injuries in the accident, and at least 102 people were undergoing treatment in various hospitals in Kasaragod, Kannur, and Kozhikode districts and in Mangalore in neighbouring Karnataka, authorities said.

In the mobile phone footage, a large crowd could be seen gathered on one side of the temple, with a Theyyam artist, dressed in ritualistic red attire, performing amidst them.
A burst was heard, and a ball of fire and billowing smoke appeared on the other side of the shrine, an eyewitness recalled.

Many survivors said they were yet to recover from the shock and said they still had no clarity on what happened at midnight.

"We were watching Theyyam... suddenly we heard a huge sound of explosion and fire at some distance. Luckily, we could move to a safer place," a young man told media on Tuesday.

Everything was over within seconds. Several people suffered injuries in the stampede after the tragedy, said another eyewitness.

Another man recounted the presence of a huge crowd near the shed where the crackers were stored.

"A large number of people were present near the shed. It was really difficult for them to run away to safety when the explosion happened," he said.

A spark from a cracker burst might have fallen into the shed and ignited the heaps of crackers stored there, an elderly person said.

A young man, who suffered minor injuries, said those who burst the firecrackers ignored the repeated warnings by people not to bust them near the shed.

Lok Sabha member Raj Mohan Unnithan said about 1,500 people participated in the temple ritual Monday night.

"Over 10,000 people were expected to take part in the continuing rituals at the temple on Tuesday. If the accident had taken place today, what would be its gravity?" he told media.

Unnithan also blamed temple committee members and the police for the display of fireworks and accused them of not taking any mandatory checks on the fireworks stock and explosives used in it.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday said she was disturbed by the news of the firecracker accident.

The Congress leader, in a post on social media platform 'X', said that her thoughts and prayers were with those injured in the incident and their families.