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Gujarat blaze scene: Deafening blast, smoke, bodies charred beyond recognition
The presence of firecrackers and raw explosives at a warehouse in Gujarat’s Deesa meant the fire rapidly spiraled out of control and left at least 21 people dead
Girish Kotak, 58, a businessman, was having tea when a deafening explosion shattered the morning calm on Tuesday. He said it felt like a plane had crashed or something had fallen from the sky. “The walls shook, it seemed. Then we saw dust and smoke from across the street near the industrial area,” said Kotak, who lives around 200 metres from an illegal firecracker factory housed in a warehouse in Gujarat’s Deesa, where a fire claimed at least 21 lives on Tuesday.
The blaze triggered explosions and the collapse of sections of the warehouse, trapping workers under the rubble. Residents and shopkeepers around the scene fled, fearing further detonations as ambulances and the fire brigade rushed to the area. Police set up barricades as rescue teams searched for bodies—some charred beyond recognition and others ripped apart.
Gujarat government spokesperson and minister Rushikesh Patel said the warehouse was not licensed to store or manufacture firecrackers. He added that police refused to renew a license to store firecrackers due to the absence of safety measures.
The illegal unit was passed off as a warehouse in violation of safety and labour laws. An official, who did not wish to be named, said no facility is permitted to manufacture firecrackers in Gujarat. “We have prima facie learned that Khubchand [Thakkar], a resident of Deesa, was illegally producing firecrackers and maybe even elsewhere,” said the official who did not wish to be named.
Police in Ahmedabad last year booked Thakkar’s son, Deepak, for alleged cricket betting. The official said he is out on bail and was part of the firecracker business. Thakkar, a wholesaler supplying fireworks across Gujarat, and Deepak were arrested late on Tuesday.
An initial police probe showed the fire may have started due to a boiler explosion. The presence of firecrackers and raw explosives meant the situation rapidly spiraled out of control. Industrial boilers can rupture and ignite surrounding materials if poorly maintained or operated under excessive pressure.
Police were investigating how long firecracker manufacturing had been secretly taking place at the warehouse and how it operated for years under the radar.
Thakkar’s family runs another firecracker business in Himmatnagar. He had been allegedly illegally employing workers, including children, to manufacture fireworks inside the warehouse.
A second official said about 200 employees, mostly migrant labourers, worked for Thakkar. “Many of those who died had arrived in Deesa just two days ago.”
A third official said 18 workers, including children, killed in the fire were migrants from Madhya Pradesh.
Over 40 members of the Nayak and Banjara communities from Handia and Sandalpur villages in Madhya Pradesh arrived in Deesa to work for Thakkar days before the fire on March 29. They earlier worked at firecracker factories run illegally in Madhya Pradesh’s Harda. The factories were closed after a blast in February 2024 left 13 people dead.
“...members of Nayak and Banjara communities worked in firecracker factories in Harda...after the closure of the illegally run factory, they lost work. They started working as labourers, but in the absence of work, they were facing a tough time,” said Rajesh Nayak, a family member of one of those killed in the Gujarat fire.
He said a month ago, a woman approached them and promised work in Gujarat at a firecracker factory. “A few people left immediately for Gujarat in a train, while others followed suit on March 29.”
Rakesh Nayak, 20, an eyewitness, said he survived the Deesa fire as he had come out to have water. “For some minutes, there was smoke everywhere. I got unconscious...my aunts, brother, and other relatives were working inside the warehouse. When I gained my senses, I found that more than 20 people had died. “ He added his brother Vishnu Nayak and aunt Guddi Bai were among the dead.
On Tuesday, a police team came to Handia village with a list of names of those killed and informed the residents about the fire in Deesa.
Gangubai, 65, the grandmother of one of the victims from Handia village, said her daughter went for work with her two sons in Deesa as they faced financial crises due to the closure of factories in Harda. “...police informed that my grandson Dhanraj, 15, died in the blast while my daughter and another son were missing.”
Handia town inspector Ramprasad Kavreti said they were verifying the names and looking for the kin of 18 people who died in Deesa. “The 15 people who died have been identified. We are making arrangements to send some relatives to Gujarat.”
