As the > competitive firework display blazed on at the Puttingal Devi Temple in Kollam on March 10, 2016, an ominous incident occurred that, in hindsight, was a forewarning of the things to come. At 2.05 a.m., a firework contractor was injured when a rocket misfired. Alarmed, the police ordered the pyrotechnics stopped forthwith. However, the temple management pressed on with the ill-fated pyrotechnic show that ultimately ended in tragedy. A.K. Yadav, Joint Chief Controller of Explosives (JCF) Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO), Chennai, who investigated the accident, made these persuasive observations in the inquiry report he submitted to the government recently. At 3.13 a.m., excitement gave way to horror as a series of devastating blasts reduced the temple ground into a chaotic charnel house. Scores of lives were snuffed out in seconds.
In the days after, the toll of the dead and injured mounted to 110 and 465 respectively. Damage to houses and vehicles was extensive. A confluence of multiple factors caused the accident. The competitive display between two sets of pyrotechnic experts necessitated the continuous loading, expending and reloading of the firing tubes. The smooth barrelled iron tubes that propelled the powerful rockets in high arching trajectories were fixed shakily on the ground.
The manhandling of the tubes caused their orientation to change progressively. Soon flaming firework debris started raining on spectators and the storage sheds. The temple management advanced the deadline for the conclusion of the display and urged the opposing teams to make up for the delayed start.
Hard-pressed for time, the competitors put on view their pyrotechnic skills simultaneously. They tried to outdo each other with thunderous and dazzling displays. Huge prize money and prestige were at stake. Scores of firing tubes were loaded and fired concurrently. Fire safety was at a premium.
The teams had employed a number of labourers to lug rockets from the storage sheds to the firing tubes. Dr. Yadav concluded that flaming debris fell on one unfired “shell” while being transported manually to the firing tubes. The “shell exploded triggering simultaneous explosions at the three locations,” the report said.
