Toll in Thrissur cracker mishap rises to 13, DNA identification continues

The official death toll in the Mundathikode firework unit explosion in Thrissur rose to 13 with the deaths of Rakesh (29) on Monday and Unnikrishnan (55) on Sunday evening.

Rakesh had been admitted to the ICU at Thrissur Medical College after sustaining serious injuries in the blast. He had been undergoing treatment for a week before succumbing to his injuries at around 8 am on Monday.

Rakesh, the son of Chirath Rajan from Kundannoor, was also a Pulikali performer.

On Sunday evening, Unnikrishnan (55), a native of Edappal, Malappuram, who had been undergoing treatment at the hospital, also succumbed to his injuries.

Earlier, on April 24, Satheesan (46), the licence holder for Thiruvambady Devaswom’s fireworks unit, also died while undergoing treatment at the hospital. He had been on ventilator support after sustaining severe burn injuries.

The incident occurred while the unit was assembling fireworks for Thiruvambady Devaswom, one of the two main groups that organise the renowned Thrissur Pooram. Most of the injured are workers at the facility.

In the hours following the blast, rescue teams recovered nine bodies, and several mutilated body parts believed to belong to four individuals, making identification and confirmation of the exact death toll difficult.

With the latest deaths, officials have confirmed a total of 13 deaths. Meanwhile, the DNA identification process of the missing persons have continued.

The state government has declared the incident a disaster and appointed a one-member judicial commission led by Justice C N Ramachandran Nair to probe the cause and circumstances of the explosion.