Explosion at firework warehouse possibly caused by welding sparks

The explosion at a warehouse storing fireworks, in Sungai-Kolok district of Narathiwat province yesterday (Saturday), was probably caused by sparks from welding, as a mechanic was trying to fix a shelf inside the building, according to the Narathiwat governor, Sanan Pongaksorn.

The governor said that the priority now is to survey the damage in the neighbourhood, to see exactly how many households and how many people have been harmed. Most of the injured have already been released from hospital, with nine staying overnight and one in a critical condition.

The governor said there are no other firework warehouses in the district of which officials are aware and the one where the accident occurred had not yet been authorized for use as a warehouse as it was newly built.

At least eleven people were killed and more than 100 injured when flares, firecrackers and other pyrotechnics, being…