Five kids among 7 dead in firecracker blast

Seven persons were killed and two injured when firecrackers exploded in a building in a coastal town of Orissa on Sunday afternoon. The explosion in Gunduripada village in Balasore district blew up the ceiling of the asbestos-roofed building.

Police said the dead included five children aged between 10 to 13 years, who were watching television when in the adjacent room the firecrackers started exploding suddenly. 8220;A man and a woman who were making the firecrackers died instantly while the children in the next room were charred to death. They had little chances of escape,8221; said Balasore district superintendent of police Rekha Lohani.

Police said the firecracker unit seemed to be illegal and was owned by one Srustidhar Nayak. Nayak has fled the area fearing arrest.