7 die in factory boiler blast in southwest India

NEW DELHI, May 23 (Xinhua) -- At least seven people, including two women, died and more than 40 were injured when a boiler exploded at a chemical factory in India's southwestern state of Maharashtra on Thursday, confirmed a local government official to Xinhua over the phone.

The mishap occurred in Dombivli area of the state's Thane district, near the country's financial capital Mumbai.

The chemical factory where the boiler exploded was situated at the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation complex.

The chemical factory caught fire after the explosion. "Seven dead bodies have been recovered from the site. The injured have been admitted to a local hospital," said the local government official.

According to preliminary reports, as the fire spread the drums containing chemicals started bursting, shattering window panes of nearby houses. The sounds of multiple blasts could be heard at a distance of 1.5 km from the factory's site, media reports quoted eyewitnesses as saying.

The blast caused cracks in the glass windows of a nearby building and damaged many houses in the vicinity, said local media reports.