MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Two explosions at fireworks workshops outside Mexico City on Thursday killed at least 24 people, including rescue workers, and injured dozens more, officials said, in the latest deadly blast to hit a town known for its fireworks production.

After a first blast in the municipality of Tultepec, firefighters, police and other rescue workers arrived at the scene when a second explosion occurred, the state government said in a statement.

“Emergency crews attended the call of the first explosion, when a second incident occurred, killing and injuring members of these groups,” the statement said.

Television images showed a plume of smoke rising over buildings on the outskirts of Tultepec and scores of firefighters and rescue workers at the scene.

The attorney general’s office for the state of Mexico, the country’s most populous state which rings the capital, said that 17 people had died at the blast site and another seven died in hospital.

Another 49 people were injured, the statement added.

A series of blasts have taken occurred at the fireworks markets, workshops and depots in Tultepec, about 20 miles (32 km) north of Mexico City, including massive explosions in a market in December 2016 that killed around three dozen people.

Luis Felipe Puente, the head of Mexico’s civil protection agency, said the sale of fireworks in the area would be suspended and permits of manufacturers would be reviewed.</s>Mexico: Two explosions at a fireworks workshop outside Mexico City have killed at least 19 people, including rescue workers, and injured dozens more, in the latest deadly blast to hit a town known for its fireworks production.

After a first blast in the municipality of Tultepec, firefighters, police and other rescue workers arrived at the scene when a second explosion occurred, the state government said in a statement on Thursday.

"Emergency crews attended the call of the first explosion, when a second incident occurred, killing and injuring members of these groups," the statement said.

Television images showed a plume of smoke rising over buildings on the outskirts of Tultepec and scores of firefighters and rescue workers at the scene.</s>TULTEPEC, Mexico: At least 19 people were killed in a series of explosions Thursday (Jul 5) at fireworks warehouses in the town of Tultepec in central Mexico, including rescue workers who died saving others' lives, officials said.

The initial explosion occurred around 9:30 am (1430 GMT), then spread to other warehouses just as police and firefighters began attending to the first victims in the town, which is known for its artisanal fireworks - and a history of deadly accidents.

"We deeply regret the deaths of those who were killed this morning in... Tultepec, including our firefighter and police colleagues who lost their lives saving those of many others," read a tweet from the Red Cross in the state of Mexico, where Tultepec is located.

At least 19 people were killed - including a minor - and 40 wounded, said state Interior Minister Alejandro Ozuna.

Hundreds of soldiers, police and firefighters deployed to the neighborhood of Xahuento, on the outskirts of the town, cordoning off a wide area around the smoldering workshops where the explosions ocurred.

"I was having breakfast when there was a terrible blast. We left the house running and I saw a huge white cloud in the sky, as if it were going to rain - except today it rained fire," said Alondra Perez, 62, who lives across the road.

An anguished teenager was asking rescue workers for information about his father, a fireworks maker who worked in the area.

"The last time I saw him was this morning. I left school to look for him as soon as we heard about the explosion. But they won't let me through and nobody is giving me any information," said Allan Osvaldo, 14.

Rescue workers confirmed that some of their own had been caught in the explosions, though it was not immediately clear how many.

A police officer told AFP an ambulance had been completely charred in one of the blasts.

"People here insist on continuing to make fireworks. It's their tradition. But they don't gage the consequences of these tragedies. It's infuriating, because our firefighter colleagues... end up dead saving these people," he said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto sent his condolences to the victims' families on Twitter and said the army and interior ministry were supporting the state rescue effort.

Tultepec is known for making the fireworks that Mexicans traditionally use to celebrate holidays and saints' days. It has been hit by devastating explosions in the past.

In December 2016, 42 people were killed and 70 injured in a series of spectacular explosions at Tultepec's San Pablito market, the largest fireworks market in the country.

On that occasion, investigators say a rocket exploded at the market and set off a chain reaction of other blasts.

The market, which was filled with people shopping for Christmas and New Year's festivities, was reduced to smoldering ruins.

The San Pablito market had been rocked by two explosions in the past: in September 2005 and again the following year.

Both those accidents left dozens injured, but no fatalities.

Fourteen people, including 11 children, died in May 2017 in another explosion at a fireworks warehouse in the central village of San Isidro, in Puebla state.</s>(CBS) — Nineteen people were killed and at least 31 were injured Thursday when two explosions ripped through fireworks workshops in a town just north of Mexico City. The dead included four firefighters and two police officers who rushed to the scene after the first explosion, only to be killed by the second blast.

Video shot from a nearby highway showed a massive plume of smoke rising up from the area of the explosion in the town of Tultepec. Other images released by local media showed wrecked buildings and scorched ground in a rural patch of modest homes and small farm plots.

The government of the State of Mexico said in a statement that eight people from Tultepec were killed, along with the six emergency personnel and two others who have not yet been identified. The state civil defense office later raised the death toll to 19, but did not specify who the other victims were in a statement posted to its Twitter account.

The government said first responders were also among the injured. Helicopters took the wounded to several local hospitals, and more than 300 police were dispatched to the scene.

Many residents in the town make a living by fabricating and selling homemade fireworks, and explosions are a regular occurrence.

In June, seven people were killed and eight injured in a blast in Tultepec.

In December 2016, a massive fire at an open-air fireworks market crowded with holiday shoppers killed several dozen people.

Deadly fireworks explosions have also occurred elsewhere in Mexico. In 2002, a blast at a market in the Gulf coast city of Veracruz killed 29; in 1999, 63 people died when an explosion of illegally stored fireworks destroyed part of the city of Celaya; in 1988, a fireworks blast in Mexico City’s La Merced market killed at least 68; and in 2013, a rocket struck a truck loaded with fireworks for a religious procession in Tlaxcala state, killing 17 people.

Safety measures at fireworks workshops and markets have been a matter of constant debate in Mexico. While regulations exist on the books, many continue making powerful firecrackers and bottle rockets and sell them to the public.</s>MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Two explosions at fireworks workshops outside Mexico City on Thursday killed at least 19 people, including rescue workers, and injured dozens more, officials said, in the latest deadly blast to hit a town known for its fireworks production.

After a first blast in the municipality of Tultepec, firefighters, police and other rescue workers arrived at the scene when a second explosion occurred, the state government said in a statement.

“Emergency crews attended the call of the first explosion, when a second incident occurred, killing and injuring members of these groups,” the statement said.

Television images showed a plume of smoke rising over buildings on the outskirts of Tultepec and scores of firefighters and rescue workers at the scene.

Luis Felipe Puente, the head of Mexico’s civil protection agency, told local television there were at least 19 fatalities and 40 people injured.

There has been a series of blasts at the fireworks markets, workshops and depots in Tultepec, about 20 miles (32 km) north of Mexico City, including a series of massive explosions in a market in December 2016 that killed around three dozen people.

Puente said the sale of fireworks in the area would be suspended and the permits of manufacturers would be reviewed.</s>A pair of explosions at a fireworks factory just outside of Mexico City has killed at least 19 people and injured many more. The explosions occurred in Tultepec, a city with roughly 100,000 people located approximately 26 miles north of Mexico City.

Video of the massive smoke plumes from the factory was broadcast on Foro TV, shown below.

According to a statement provided to Reuters, rescue workers and firefighters were converging on the site of the 9:30 a.m. explosion when a second explosion occurred, injuring and killing additional people, including rescue workers.

Mexico civil protection agency head Luis Felipe Puente said there have been at least 19 confirmed fatalities and 40 injured. Mexico’s Interior Minister said one of the deceased was a minor. A cause for the blasts is currently unknown.

Mexico President Enrique Peña Nieto issued a statement on Twitter about the strategy.

In translation: “I deeply regret the loss of life in the explosion that occurred in #Tultepec. I send my condolences to the families of the deceased and I wish prompt recovery to those who were injured. PcSegob and @SEDENAmx support the @edomex in emergency attention.”

Tultepec Is Known for its Fireworks Production in Mexico & has had Multiple Tragic Fireworks Accidents Before

On December 20, 2016, an explosion at Tultepec’s San Pablito Market killed at least 42. A rocket exploded in the market causing 300 tons of fireworks that were in the market at the time to explode. An additional 84 victims were injured.

Two previous explosions, once in 2005 and another in 2006, caused dozens of injuries but no deaths.

The latest tragedy in Tultepec caused a police officer to speak out about the culture surrounding fireworks in the area.

“People here insist on continuing to make fireworks. It’s their tradition. But they don’t gage the consequences of these tragedies. It’s infuriating, because our firefighter colleagues… end up dead saving these people,” he said in a statement to AFP, published by Yahoo!

More than half of Tultepec residents work in the fireworks industry, and the city is responsible for roughly half of the country’s fireworks production. Every year, 100,000 people flock to the National Pyrotechnic Festival in Tultepec, a festival that originated as a celebration for the John of God, the patron saint of fireworks.</s>In June, seven people were killed and eight injured in a blast in Tultepec.

In December 2016, a massive fire at an open-air fireworks market crowded with holiday shoppers killed several dozen people.

Deadly fireworks explosions have also occurred elsewhere in Mexico. In 2002, a blast at a market in the Gulf coast city of Veracruz killed 29; in 1999, 63 people died when an explosion of illegally stored fireworks destroyed part of the city of Celaya; in 1988, a fireworks blast in Mexico City's La Merced market killed at least 68; and in 2013, a rocket struck a truck loaded with fireworks for a religious procession in Tlaxcala state, killing 17 people.

Safety measures at fireworks workshops and markets have been a matter of constant debate in Mexico. While regulations exist on the books, many continue making powerful firecrackers and bottle rockets and sell them to the public.</s>Earlier today, fireworks explosions outside of Mexico City killed at least 19 people, and injured dozens of others, Fox News reports.

The accident occurred at a fireworks workshop north of the capitol, in the municipality of Tultepec. Nineteen people were killed as a result of two separate explosions, including four firefighters and two law enforcement officers who were killed by the second blast, while they were responding to the first.

Luis Felipe Puente, a government worker at Mexico’s civil protection agency, relayed to local media that close to two dozen people had been killed, and 40 had been injured (differing numbers of injured people are being reported by various news outlets). In total, Puente said there had been four explosions.

Even worse, it seems that these explosions occurred at an unauthorized, illegal fireworks workshop, with the explosions spreading as flammable materials were spread from the blasts. Speaking to Milenio news network, Puente elaborated on the timeline of the accident.

While it will take some time for all the damage and casualties to be assessed, initial reports paint a rather grim picture. As reported by CBS News, video footage shot from a nearby road shows massive plumes of smoke rising up from Tultepec and the surrounding area. Other images captured by local news agencies show destroyed buildings, as well as scorched ground and farm land.

Similar to the police officers and firefighters killed in the blast, the Mexican government has stated that other first responders were injured in the line of duty. Helicopters were dispatched to transport those wounded to local hospitals. More than 300 law enforcement officers were dispatched to the scene.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time that Tultepec has been subjected to accidents of this nature. The area has become a noted location for fireworks, with many of the town’s residents earning a living by manufacturing and distributing homemade fireworks.

Consequently, explosions have become a common occurrence. Just last month, seven people were killed and eight injured from a fireworks blast. In December of 2016, a massive fire broke out at an outdoor fireworks market, which was filled with holiday shoppers. Several dozen people were killed as a result.

Safety measures and rules at fireworks markets and workshops have been a constant source of debate in the region. While laws and regulations have been signed into effect, it seems that clandestine manufacturers continue to skirt and ignore the laws.</s>MEXICO CITY (AP) - Several people have been injured in two explosions that ripped through fireworks workshops just north of Mexico City.

The government of the State of Mexico said Thursday it was still checking reports that some had died.

The victims may include emergency personnel because firefighters and paramedics were attending to victims of one blast when a second explosion occurred nearby.

Many residents in the town of Tultepec make a living by fabricating and selling homemade fireworks, and explosions are a regular occurrence.

In June, seven people were killed and eight injured in a blast in the town.

In December 2016, a massive fire at an open-air fireworks market killed several dozen people.</s>At least 17 people have been killed and at least 31 injured in two explosions that ripped through fireworks workshops just north of Mexico City, in the latest in a series of deadly blasts to hit the area. 



The dead included four firefighters and two police officers who rushed to the scene after the first explosion, only to be killed by the second blast.

Many residents in the town of Tultepec make a living by fabricating and selling homemade fireworks, and explosions are a regular occurrence.

In June, seven people were killed and eight injured in a blast in the town.



At least 31 people were killed in December 2016, when a massive fire set off a chain reaction at an open-air fireworks market in the town.

Safety measures at fireworks workshops and markets have been a matter of constant debate in Mexico. While regulations exist on the books, many continue making powerful firecrackers and bottle rockets and sell them to the public.
Two explosions at fireworks workshops in Tultepec, Mexico, kill at least 19 people, including rescue workers, and injure dozens more. Tultepec is home to a major fireworks industry.