A series of explosions rocked the town of Bhagalpur in the Indian state of Bihar on Thursday night around 11:30 pm in which 12 people have died and several have been injured.
The explosion occurred in the house in Kajwali Chak village.
The explosion was so intense that four houses collapsed and the sound was heard around 15 kms away from the site.
“The explosion may have taken place during the illegal manufacturing of country-made crude bombs. There is also a possibility that the alleged persons could be making crackers. As the nature of the blast was so intense, we believe that the quantity of the explosives was very high,” Bhagalpur range DIG Sujit Kumar said.
The injured persons were admitted to the Mayaganj hospital in Bhagalpur.
Local police believe that there could be more persons trapped under the debris. The rescue operation started soon after the incident.
“We are in the process of recording the statement of the injured to find out the nature of explosives. We have also called the FSL team to collect the samples as well,” Kumar said.
The areas around Bhagalpur and Munger are believed to be the hubs for the illegal manufacturing of firearms and bombs.