INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Five people have been killed and two others injured in an explosion at a fireworks factory in Sicily.Italian police said the 71-year-old
wife of the owner of the family-run business was among the victims.Her son - who tried to save his mother - was seriously hurt and was taken
to hospital for treatment for severe burns, La Repubblica reported.The blast happened on Wednesday afternoon in the town of Barcellona Pozzo
di Gotto, situated around 25 miles from the harbour city of Messina in northeast Sicily.Police said it was possible staff may have
accidentally triggered the explosion with welding equipment
An investigation has been launched into the cause of the blast.Sixty-eight people have been killed in explosions at fireworks firms since
2000, according to Italian consumer group Codacons.Safety issues at such plants have long been debated in Italy, where the production of
fireworks is often a family-run business.
