19 die in Turkish fireworks building blast

A blast ripped through a building in an industrial neighborhood of Istanbul on Thursday, leaving at least 19 people dead, authorities told CNN.

The authorities, who ruled out terror activity, believe fireworks stored in the building caused the blast.

The explosion took place around 9:45 a.m. on the third floor of a four-story building in Davutpasa, where there was an unregistered storehouse full of sparklers, said Muammer Guler the district governor of Istanbul.

He said there had been a fire at the building before the blast

Guler said at least 68 people were injured, and a handful of them were critically hurt.

Nearby buildings were damaged and part of the structure collapsed after the explosion.


http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/01/31/istanbul.blast/index.html