Bhubaneswar, Oct 31 (PTI) Three persons were critically injured as a heap of firecrackers caught fire and exploded in the seaside town of Puri in Odisha on Thursday, police said.

The incident happened at Batagaon in the evening when one Sanjay Jena had gone to buy firecrackers at the shop of one Bula Rout.

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One firecracker that Jena lit accidentally fell on other firecrackers, following which the explosion took place.

Apart from Sanjay and Bula, a woman identified as Lipa Routh, who was standing near them, also sustained serious burn injuries, police said.

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They were initially taken to the Puri District Headquarters Hospital and later sent to the SCB Medical College Hospital in Cuttack for better treatment.

The condition of the three injured persons was critical, officials said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)