At least seven people were killed and four injured after an explosion at a workshop of a firecracker factory in Uttar Pradesh’s Badaun on Friday evening, police said.

“The blast occurred in a room that was used to store crackers at around 4:30 pm. We have started the rescue work,” said Superintendent of Police of Badaun Ashok Kumar. The workshop is located on the outskirts of Rasoolpur village, about six km from Badaun.

The rescue teams pulled out seven bodies from the blast site. The injured were rushed to a district hospital. Dead bodies were sent for post-mortem examination.

The building which houses the workshop was charred. Though police have started investigation, but according to locals the explosion followed the fire caused by short circuit.