Naib Tehsildar Among 9 Dead, 29 Injured in Massive Accidental Blast Inside Nowgam Police Station – Alfaaz – The Words

Srinagar: Nine people, including a Naib Tehsildar, several policemen, members of the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and a local tailor, were killed, while 29 others were injured in a high-intensity accidental explosion at Nowgam Police Station in Srinagar on intervening Friday and Saturday night, officials said.

As per officials, the explosion took place when a confiscated explosive, most likely ammonium nitrate, detonated inside the police station. The material had recently been brought from Faridabad, Haryana, after Jammu & Kashmir Police and Faridabad Police jointly busted a “doctors’ terror module”. A massive cache was recovered in the operation.

The blast occurred during an inspection and sample extraction process being conducted by police personnel and the FSL team in the presence of an executive magistrate. Officials said that most of the deceased are policemen and FSL experts. The Naib Tehsildar who was supervising the inspection and a local tailor were also among the dead.

The intensity of the explosion caused extensive damage to the police station building, official records and several vehicles parked nearby. Some bodies were completely burnt, and body parts were found scattered across nearby houses located 100–200 meters away.

Twenty-nine injured individuals were evacuated to Army’s 92 Base Hospital, SKIMS Soura and a local private hospital. Several of them are in critical condition, and officials warned that the death toll may rise.

Authorities said that the identification of the victims is underway. So far, no formal official statement has been issued regarding the incident. (with inputs from news agency GNS and KNO)