Boy dies, two men injured in explosion at fireworks store

[chowka]

Sunday August 22, 2010 MYT 5:37:00 PM

Boy dies, two men injured in explosion at fireworks store

KUALA TERENGGANU: A six-year-old boy was killed and two men badly injured in an explosion on Sunday at a house used to store fireworks and firecrackers in a village here. The force of the explosion crushed the head of Khairul Arif Ayob and hurled him 15metres up, leaving him entangled in a tree beside the house at about 12.30pm in Kampung Seberang Baruh, Cabang Tiga.

The kindergarten pupil at Kampung Losong Atap Zin was brought down by villagers and rushed to hospital, said eye-witness Nor Shafli Azhar, 36.
"One of the injured men had his leg crushed and the other guy suffered serious injuries to both his legs," said Nor Shafli. The two men, believed to be 22 and 23, have yet to be identified. Nor Shafli said the explosion shook his nearby house and he saw thick, black smoke billowing from the explosion site when he ran out.

"When I reached there, the house was a wreck. A wall had been completely blown off while the verandah had collapsed. Two men lay outside with serious injuries," said Nor Shafli, a businessman. He said one of the men was unconscious while the other, who was lying under broken planks, told him about the boy and asked him to look for him. "I couldn’t find him at first. But I looked up and there he was. I did not expect to see his head so badly crushed,” he said. - Bernama

 

[General Veers]

Boy dies as contraband blows up house


Monday August 23, 2010

Boy dies as contraband blows up house

By SAZALI NOOR
[email protected]

KUALA TERENGGANU: A six-year-old kindergarten pupil was killed and two others seriously injured when firecrackers and fireworks being stored in an abandoned semi-wooden house exploded. The force of the blast threw Khairul Arif Ayob about 15m into the air. His body was found entangled on a tree top.

Villagers in Kampung Seberang Baruh in Ca__bang Tiga, some 5km from here, described the explosion as something like a “bomb blast.” The impact of the blast also damaged three nearby houses. The fireworks were being stored for the coming Hari Raya celebration. Khairul, a pupil of a government-run kindergarten in Kampung Losong Atap Zin, was playing outside the abandoned house when the blast occurred at about 12.30pm.

House of death: A policeman taking away the remaining fireworks from the house damaged by a blast that killed six-year-old Khairul (inset) at Kampung Seberang Baruh in Kuala Terengganu yesterday. — ZABIDI TUSIN / The Star

The injured were two adults — aged 22 and 23 — who have yet to be identified. They are being treated at the Sultanah Nur Zahirah Hospital intensive care unit here. Witness Nor Shafli Azhar, 36, said Khairul’s head was badly injured in the explosion. He said villagers helped to bring him down from the tree and rushed him to hospital.

Nor Shafli said he was resting in his house not far from the scene when he heard a thunderous sound that also shook his home. He said saw thick smoke billowing from the house. “When I got there, the house was a wreck with a wall completely blown off while the verandah had collapsed. Two men lay sprawled outside with serious injuries,” said businessman Nor Shafli.

He said one of the men was unconscious while the other, who was lying under broken planks, told him about Khairul and asked him to look for the boy. Neighbour Hasnah Abdul Jalil, 50, said she saw several men transporting boxes and storing them at the abandoned house over the past few days. “I was not aware that they were storing fireworks but luckily my family was away at the time of the blast,’’ she added.

Khairul’s aunty Rozita Abdul Rahman, 35, said she was puzzled as to why the boy followed one of their family friends to the site. She said the victim’s father Ayob Abd Rahman, 28, and mother Kamariah Hassan, 25, had gone to the city to buy Hari Raya clothes for Khairul.

“Khairul was not feeling well for a few days and his parents left him with me and wanted to surprise him with new clothes for Hari Raya,’’ she added in between sobs. State police chief Senior Asst Comm 1 Datuk Mohd Shukri Dahlan said police had set up a team to probe the incident, and question those involved in the trade of the fireworks.