Thick smoke rises from the rubble after a firework exploded that killed at least nine people in Sungai Kolok district in Narathiwat on July 29, 2023. Photo from Radio Thailand Sungai Kolok Facebook page
Twelve people were killed and more than 100 injured when firecrackers kept in a warehouse exploded in southern Thailand, an official said on Sunday.
Firecrackers sparked a fire on Saturday at the unlicensed warehouse at Muno Market in Su-ngai Kolok district in the southern province of Narathiwat, which borders Malaysia, Narathiwat Governor Sanan Phongaksorn said. .
“There are 10 dead plus the remains of two unidentified people, who were sent for DNA checks,” Sanan said.
He said 121 people were injured, two of them seriously, while 111 were discharged from hospital, he said. “But there should be no more deaths.”
More than 200 homes surrounding the warehouse were damaged by the blast, affecting 365 people. Some 19 people were still staying in a shelter as several families moved into the homes of relatives, Sanan said.
Police were investigating the cause of the incident, he said, with initial reports suggesting a welding error at the warehouse.
