Sudan blast: At least 18 Indians lost their lives in a factory explosion

Khartoum/Sudan: A massive gas explosion at a tile manufacturing unit in an industrial zone of north Khartoum, on Tuesday, took nearly twenty-three lives among which 18 were Indians, as per officials.

The fire was triggered by an explosion in a gas tanker which set the factory ablaze, where over 50 Indians were working.

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The smoke so thick that it blackened the sky after the blaze broke out, according to witnesses.

"The explosion was loud. Several cars parked in the compound of the factory also caught fire,"told a eye-witness to media at the scene.

As per Indian embassy in Khartoum over 50 Indian nationals were employed in the tile factory. The news of casualties was given out by the embassy on its website, without giving figures.

"A fire erupted in an industrial area because of which 23 people were killed and more than 130 injured," the cabinet said in a statement.

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"A blast in a gas tanker triggered the fire."

However, as preliminary reports from the scene indicates necessary safety equipment were missing and inflammable materials were stored improperly at the site.

"There were also inflammable materials improperly stored, which led to the spread of the fire," the government said.

To rescue the workers from the site a doctors committee of Sudan's said the casualties were taken to hospitals for medication.

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