Andhra cracker blast horror in Vetlapalem: Toll climbs to 21

The death toll from the devastating explosion at a licensed firecracker unit in Andhra Pradesh’s Kakinada district rose to 21 overnight, an official said Sunday, deepening the tragedy that has shaken the region.

As many as 20 people — including nine women — were killed and nine others critically injured when a powerful blast ripped through the facility in Vetlapalem village of Samarlakota mandal on Saturday.

"Death toll is 21. One death after midnight," the official told PTI.


Police said the owner of Surya Sri Fire Works, Adabala Srinivas, was among those killed in the blast.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan visited the injured workers undergoing treatment at Kakinada Government General Hospital and said rule violations by the unit’s owner had led to the disaster.

"It is deplorable that a workplace which has permission to employ eight people has engaged 31. Will tighten rules to avoid recurrence of this kind of incident in the future," said Kalyan in a press release.

He added that the government would bear the full cost of treatment for the injured.

The explosion — suspected to have been intensified by overcrowding and safety lapses — has triggered outrage and renewed scrutiny of compliance standards at fireworks manufacturing units, especially during peak festival production periods.