25 injured after Thaipusam fireworks explosion in Sungai Petani

SUNGAI PETANI: A Thaipusam celebration attended by more than 30,000 Hindus near the Sri Subramaniya Swami Temple near here turned chaotic after more than 25 were injured from firework explosions last night.
Kedah MIC chief Datuk Jaspal Singh said the incident took place at 8.30pm while the crowd was witnessing the chariot procession emerging from the temple which started about half-an-hour earlier.
"Most of the victims suffered light injuries. We will ask the authorities to investigate the incident because we did not include fireworks in the celebration agenda," he said when met by reporters in the compound of the Sultan Abdul Halim Hospital here last night.
However, the police had yet to issue any statement on the incident while the actual number of victims and extent of injuries were not known.
Meanwhile, a victim A Tiruselvi, 41, said her son and herself were near the vehicles in the procession when the incident took place.
"At that time, we were engrossed watching the fireworks display. Unfortunately, some fireworks went off on the ground sending the crowd scattering for cover," she added. — Bernama