MULTAN, Aug 4: Six people died and 12 others suffered injuries when fireworks material kept in a shop in Gurr Mandi area went off on Saturday.

According to sources, the blast was so powerful that it destroyed a nearby building and some shops in addition to the shop-cum-house where the material was kept.

The sources said that one Zulfiqar, who converted the lower portion of his house into a shop, brought the material used in the preparation of fireworks from Lahore’s Mochi Gate area on Friday night.

The material exploded at around 9:15am on Saturday when it was being shifted to the shop.

Those killed were Ashfaq, Amir, Raheel, Tayyaba Bibi, Pervez and Dilawar Qureshi and the injured were Muhammad Ayub, Ali, Bano, Amir, Akbari Bibi, Muhammad Nawaz, Sufiyan, Perveen, Rukhsar, Dildar Qureshi, Abid and Asghar.

The bodies and the injured were taken to the Nishtar Hospital where the injured were reported out of danger.

Rescue 1122 teams, who pulled the victims out of the rubble, said that for about two hours the area was covered by dust and smoke, hindering the rescue work. Police claimed to have detained Zulfiqar for running the illegal business.

City Police Officer Amir Zulfiqar Khan directed the police to probe the incident.