PARAVUR (KOLLAM): A competitive fireworks display which flouted rules and regulations turned the festival ground of Puttingal devi temple into a graveyard of 106 devotees.
The explosion that rocked the small town in the early hours of this Black Sunday led to the worst ever fireworks tragedy witnessed by the state which has an unfortunate history of similar mishaps. Around 273 people are in different hospitals, and many of them are seriously injured.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi accompanied by Union Health Minister J P Nadda and a team of doctors flew down, visited the temple and met the injured at the Kollam district hospital. The PM also met Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and other ministers. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi accompanied by senior leader A K Antony followed suit. BJP national president Amit Shah cancelled all his political engagements in the state and visited the spot.
The state cabinet held an emergency meeting at the Kollam guest house and recommended a judicial probe and Crime Branch investigation into the incident. Chandy rushed to the site from Puthupally - his constituency and home town. His Cabinet colleagues too reached the spot from different parts of the state.
The pressure tactics and utter disdain of regulations by the temple administration led to this tragedy. The concrete cracker house multiplied the magnitude. One of the crackers went sideways into the cracker house sparking a massive explosion and spraying concrete missiles in a radius of over 500 metres. The cracker house was reduced to rubble as a huge fireball engulfed the entire temple complex. Bodies and body parts were strewn around - one of the most shocking scenes being a severed arm which landed on the roof of a shed in the temple compound.
Proof of Illegal Measures
PARAVUR (KOLLAM): Here’s the proof. A brochure in the possession of ‘Express’, revealed that the temple authorities had made preparations for a full-scale firework contest despite objections raised by some local people and a specific order from the district administration. District Collector A Shainamol had issued an order on April 3 banning the fireworks competition considering the safety of devotees and 11 houses in 60-metre vicinity. It noted that the temple authorities concealed the fact that they had given fireworks contract to another agency. City Police Commissioner P Prakash said the temple authorities misled the police stating that they had received an approval from the Revenue Department. Puttingal Devaswom managing committee president P S Jayalal and general secretary J Krishnankutty Pillai along with other office bearers have vanished after the tragedy. They are not available for any comment.
The Dangerous Chemistry
Kozhikode: Colours and unadulterated joy define the festive season in Kerala. But there is a shadowy side - smuggling of 10-15 tonnes of explosives during the season. The explosives contain sulphur/sulphurate in admixture with potassium chlorate to give a thundering effect to the festivities. Top government officers confirmed that the use of potassium chlorate might be the reason for such a huge explosion, resulting in the Kollam tragedy.
Cabinet Orders Judicial Probe
Kollam: The state government on Sunday decided to conduct a comprehensive judicial probe in to the fire mishap which claimed more than 100 lives. Briefing the media after the emergency Cabinet meeting held at the Ashramaam Guest House here, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said Justice (Retd)Krishnan Nair will be appointed as the Judicial Commission to conduct the probe. The Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Nalini Netto will be asked to prepare the terms of reference of the probe for the consideration of the Cabinet in an urgent manner. The Commission will have to submit its report within six months. Chandy said the Paravur police, which registered a case, has already started investigation under Assistant Commissioner, Chathannur.
Police Officer Among Victims
TIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A 42-year-old senior civil police officer was killed in the Puttingal temple tragedy after he suffered severe burns while on duty near the accident spot. The deceased has been identified as Saji Sebastian, son of Sebastian and Julia, a resident of Saji Bhavanam, Vellimon in Kollam. According to officials in the AR camp, he was on duty near the scene and died on the spot. Saji was a senior police officer in the Kollam AR camp and was there since 2009. He is survived by wife Sherin and two children, Merin Saji and Lijiya Saji. The body has been handed over to the family after postmortem.
Major festivals with fireworks display:
■ April 15 Kollam Pooram
■ April 17 Thrissur Pooram
■ April 14 to 23 Harippad Utsavam
■ April 23 to Edappally Perunnal
■ April 27 to May 7 Edathua Perunnal
■ April 28 to May 7 Puthuppally Perunnal
Timeline
April 3 (Sunday): The annual festival at Paravur Puttingal Devi temple commences
April 9 (Saturday): The final day of festivities
April 9: 10 pm: Fireworks ceremony as part of the annual festival commences
April 10 (Sunday): 3.30 am: Sparks from the fireworks fall on the storeroom where the crackers are stored. The crackers explode. The building of the devaswom board collapses in the impact. Rescue operations begin after some time
6.30 am: Fire at the temple brought under control
7 am: State Home Minister says a judicial inquiry will be ordered into the fire mishap
8.10 am: Government seeks Election Commission’s nod to release financial aid to the victims
8.30 am: Chief Minister speaks to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, seeking Central aid. He seeks helicopters to transport the injured
8.30 am: Election Commission gives its nod to disburse financial assistance to the victim
8.45 am: Rajnath Singh offers support to the state to deal with the tragedy
8.50 am: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announces arrangements for immediate shifting of injured by helicopter; instructs Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare J P Nadda to reach the site of tragedy
8.50 am: Paravur police register case against temple authorities and the licensee
9 am: Kerala Health Minister V S Sivakumar calls a meeting of police officers to take decisions on procedures of postmortem
9.05 am: Rajnath Singh directs NDRF DG to have four NDRF teams on standby in Chennai
9.30 am: Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala visits the place and orders detailed probe
9.50 am: PM Narendra Modi announces Rs 2-lakh ex-gratia to the kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to the critically injured
10.40 am: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi speaks to Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, expresses his condolence and says he would visit the place in the afternoon
10.40 am: Navy dispatches INS Kabra, INS Kalpeni and INS Sunayna with medical supplies
11 am: Chief Minister Oommen Chandy reaches the spot. He promises assistance to the injured and orders detailed probe into the incident
12 noon: BJP chief Amit Shah visits Thiruvananthapuram Medical College where the injured are admitted
1.30 pm: Emergency cabinet meet
2.40 pm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaches Thiruvavananthapuram airport
3.45 pm: Opposition leader V S Achuthanandan visits the site
4.15 pm: Modi reaches Paravur Puttingal Devi temple
5.30 pm: Modi, Oommen Chandy and Union Health Minister J P Nadda take stock of the situation in Kollam
6 pm: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi arrives at Puttingal temple
6.25 pm: Navy ships carrying medical supplies and medical teams dock at the Kollam harbour
6.35 pm: Modi meets the injured at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital
7.15 pm: Rahul Gandhi reaches Kollam hospital and meets the injured
9.30 pm: Rahul Gandhi reaches Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital
Red Cross FMRs Join Rescue Mission
T’Puram: Red Cross First Medical Responders (FMR) rushed to render their services in tragic-hit Paravur. As many as eight FMR from Kottayam and Kollam went to the region. They helped in the evacuation of the injured and gave first aid, relief and other services to the injured. “We ensured that these are transported properly as many suffered irreparable damage if they aren’t transported with care,” said Ganesh R from Ernakulam.
AIIMS Doctors Arrive at Thiruvananthapuram MCH
T’Puram: As many as 25 doctors and paramedics from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Safdarjang, Ram Manohar Lohia, Kanyakumari and Tirunelveli Medical Colleges reached here to assist the doctors at Thiruvananthapuram MC, where a majority of the injured in the Paravur firework tragedy is admitted. Some of the doctors had accompanied PM on his visit to the state. The others are on their way from Delhi, DHS Dr R Ramesh said.
Rahul visits Mishap Spot
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi reached the mishap spot accompanied by the KPCC president, Ramesh Chennithala and senior leader A K Antony. After visiting the mishap spot, he then proceeded to the District Hospital where many injured are undergoing treatment.
Solatium Hiked
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy who had first declared a solatium of Rs 4 lakh to the kin of the deceased after visiting the spot was later revised it to Rs 10 lakh after the Cabinet meet.
Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation Guidelines
➤Only common firework items such as Chinese cracker, palm leaf cracker, flowerpot, ‘chakkram’ and mini bomb are authorised to manufacture
➤Manufacturers shall produce only one item at a time. Potassium chlorate shall not be used in any of the firework compositions
➤Finished products should be shifted from the manufacturing unit to storage shed as and when manufactured
➤All facilities, including the manufacturing unit, drying platform and storage shed, should have only the prescribed quantity of formwork materials
➤Explosives shall be manufactured in rooms lightly constructed in single-storey buildings, and the facilities should be set up at least 45 metres from other buildings and public facilities
105 Victims at MCH
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: One hundred and five victims of the fireworks mishap were admitted to the Government Medical College Hospital here on Sunday.
Eleven persons were brought dead and two died while undergoing treatment. According to hospital authorities, the condition of 11 patients is extremely critical. Of them, seven are in the burns ICU and four in surgical ICU. While most of the persons suffered burns, others were injured in the stampede and some after getting trapped under the debris.
Though four additional operating tables were set up in the emergency surgery unit in the forenoon, the increasing number of patients forced the hospital to admit some critical burns patients to the orthopaedics surgery unit as well. The bodies of five persons were not identified till Sunday night. Based on alerts from the police and the district administration, the hospital had made elaborate arrangements by pooling in maximum number of doctors, house surgeons and paramedics. Large number of ambulances and private vehicles brought over 100 persons to the hospital.
An emergency call from the blood bank received a huge response. Hundreds gave blood and another 1,500 registered their names for offering blood. Victims were also admitted to four private hospitals in the capital. Except one person, the others are reported to be out of danger.
Vellilamkandam
Bids Tearful Adieu Idukki: Kattappana native K K Raghu, 64, has been identified as one of the victims of the fireworks tragedy in Kollam. Raghu, of Karakkattil at Vellilamkandam, had left for Kollam on Saturday night to see the fireworks at the Puttingal temple, where his son Ajikumar works as ‘Keezhshanthi’.
The village received the news of the demise of Raghu with shock. Raghu had promised to return by Wednesday morning. Raghu, a daily wage labourer, was the sole breadwinner of his family. The body, which was brought home after the postmortem examination, was cremated in the compound of his house.