By LIEZLE BASA IÑIGO
DAGUPAN CITY – Five residents were reportedly injured in a fireworks factory explosion in Barangay Tebeng here on Sunday afternoon.
The explosion at around 4 p.m. triggered a fire in the factory.
The Bureau of Fire Protection, police, and rescue units extinguished the fire and evacuated affected residents. The injured, two of them senior citizens, were taken to a hospital.
Authorities have yet to determine the cause of the explosion.
Residents said the ground violently shook like an earthquake during the explosion. People ran outside their houses and saw thick smoke billowing from the factory.
Mayor Belen Fernandez proceeded to the area to assess the situation.
Fernandez said they won’t allow any clandestine firecracker factory to be built and endanger the people. She said they are coordinating with authorities to determine accountability and prevent such incidents in the future.
