A large explosion has ripped through a fireworks market in the municipality of Tultepec in Mexico, killing at least 29 people and injuring more than 70 others, local officials say. Large plumes of smoke were billowing from the site.
The incident happened at about 2:50 p.m. local time on Tuesday when an explosion ripped through a popular fireworks market in Tultepec, which is about 25 kilometers (15 miles) north of Mexico City. Large plumes of black smoke were visible for miles.
Isidro Sánchez Neri, the head of the civil protection agency in Tultepec, confirmed that at least 29 people had been killed. Federal police, meanwhile, reported that 72 others were being treated at area hospitals, including some who are gravely injured with burns covering up to 90 percent of their bodies.
Drone footage from the site showed that the market was devastated by the blast, and secondary explosions were continuing more than an hour after the incident began. A large number of emergency services have responded to the scene.
It was not immediately known what caused Tuesday’s explosion.
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