The afternoon had settled into a familiar lull in Mundathikode in Thrissur. Workers, easing out of their lunch break, were back at their units, racing against time to prepare fireworks for the upcoming Thrissur Pooram.

Under the supervision of Mundathikode Satheesh—who had led the Thiruvambady Devaswom’s fireworks preparations for over 13 years—the unit at the Kuttamkulam fields was a hive of quiet, focussed activity.

Then, at around 3.30 p.m., everything changed.

A thunderous roar, likened by locals to an earthquake, ripped through the air and the calm gave way to chaos. When residents rushed towards the site, they were met by a terrifying sight—rows of fireworks sheds engulfed in flames, explosions tearing through them.

Spread across nearly five acres, the unit housed eight sheds. Five of them caught fire, including three where large quantities of explosive materials were stored. The force of the blasts shattered structures, sending concrete debris hurtling across the fields. Flames leapt onto nearby trees and thick smoke blanketed the entire area.

Body parts lay scattered across adjoining plots, a grim testament to the intensity of the explosions.

Haridasan, who lives a short distance away, was among the first to hear the blast. “It was a massive sound. When I looked, the sheds were already burning,” he said. “Explosives were going off, and bodies were scattered. It was not a sight one could bear. I immediately called for ambulance.”

Though some workers managed to run to safety when smoke first rose, others were caught in the chain of explosions that followed. As shock gave way to urgency, local people scrambled to move the injured, many with severe burns and dismembered limbs, to hospitals.

The scale of the disaster soon became clear—13 lives lost and around 40 people injured, five with severe burns. Of them, 23 were admitted to Government Medical College Hospital (MCH), Thrissur, while others were taken to nearby private hospitals.

Rescue efforts were severely hampered by the location of the unit, situated within a large plot adjoining paddy fields with limited access. Continuous explosions, including two major initial blasts followed by smaller ones, kept rescuers at bay. Fire and Rescue Services teams struggled to reach the site of the blast while earthmovers were deployed to clear pathways for emergency vehicles.

Even hours later, explosions continued intermittently, forcing rescuers to maintain distance. Nearby houses also suffered damage, with shattered windows injuring residents.

Satheesh, the man at the helm of the operation for over a decade, is now among the critically injured, undergoing treatment at the MCH. Friends say he had recently spoken about stepping away from the hazardous trade.

What began as another day of meticulous preparation for a grand festival ended in devastation—leaving behind a scarred landscape, grieving families, and a community struggling to come to terms with the scale of the tragedy.