Among the five dead so far in the explosion at a house where a firecracker manufacturing unit was running in Alampur village in Bihar’s Siwan district is the house owner, Amiruddin Ahmad, along with his three grandchildren, including two minors, police said on Saturday morning.
Azad’s wife has also survived. Efforts are being made to clear the debris and search for the child. District Magistrate Vijay Prakash Meena stated that the administration is taking charge of removing the debris and carrying out relief work at the site.
70-year-old Amiruddin was in the business of firecracker sales and manufacturing for many decades, and the police are now probing whether he was running the unit with valid papers. Apart from the house owner, those who died were identified as his granddaughter Muskan Siddiqui (20), Khusboo Siddiqui (10), grandson Arshad Siddiqui (8) and Rajkumar alias Bhola (35), Siwan Superintendent of Police Bharat Soni said. Police said Amiruddin’s son Marham Azad is alive, as he was not present in the house at the time of the explosion at around 5.30 pm on Friday.
Police said it is the administration’s priority to determine whether any other person is trapped in the debris. Sources said police have also started a massive search of the area by cordoning off the house and nearby field.
A Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team has arrived at the scene; the fire has been completely extinguished, and a thorough search of the entire house and blast site is underway. After the postmortem of all deceased, their bodies were handed over to the next of kin.
