Explosion in Northern Pakistan Kills 45 People

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, August 03, 2003

Explosion in Northern Pakistan Kills 45 People

At least 45 people were killed and many more others injured early Sunday morning when explosives used for road building detonated in a village in northern Pakistan,local authorities said. The incident took place in the village of Gayal, some 168 km south of Gilgit.

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At least 45 people were killed and 100 injured in an huge explosion in Pakistan Northern Area (Provincial Region) early Sunday morning, the state-run television Pakistan Television reported.

The blast occurred in Diamer district, some 400 kilometers from Islamabad, in a house of a contractor who had stored explosives.

The explosives were used for blasting in mountains to cut channels and get stones to build houses and bridges.

The state-run television reported that the people in Gial village were trying to extinguish fire in the house of contractor Abdul Waris when the explosives went off with a huge explosion.

The explosion killed majority of those who were trying to put out the blaze. The explosion caused fire in the nearby houses. Children and women were among those killed in the explosion.

Deputy Secretary of Northern Area Mohammad Rehmani said over phone from the area that the incident took place at 2 a.m.

He said army and police had rushed to the site and started rescue operation. Local people also helped extract dead bodies from the collapsed buildings.

Most of the injured have been shifted to a hospital in the nearby Chilas district.

Taj Muhammad, an official in the office of Deputy Commissioner Diamer, said that several of the injured are in critical condition.

Officials fear the toll figure may rise. Some of the seriously injured are being shifted to the northern town of Gilgit and possibly to Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

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