Hours after a massive fire broke out at a temple in Kerala's Kollam on Sunday -- in which 106 people died and more than 350 were injured -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached the spot with a team of 15 doctors from Delhi.
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and state Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala took the Prime minister around the temple precincts and briefed him on the incident. Later, PM Modi visited the district hospital and met the injured.
Calling the incident "very unfortunate," the Prime Minister said, "I told the CM that if the injured need to be shifted to Delhi, Mumbai, the Centre will help them."
The massive fire had broken out during a fireworks display at the Puttingal temple around 3 am during an all-night fireworks display that had been banned by the state government. The grounds, next to the temple, had been packed with around 15,000 people. (Pictures)
Minutes after the first explosion clouds of white smoke were seen in night sky. Successive explosions sent huge chunks of concrete flying as far as a kilometer according to a witness. Parts of the temple roof caved in.
The injured have been taken to 10 hospitals and according to Mr Chennithala, "all necessary arrangements have been made in Ernakulam and Trivandrum." The Government Medical College in Thiruvananthapuram has sent out an appeal for blood donors.
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