Blast on Yavatmal road kills four, injures five as tractor cylinder explodes

Four people were killed and five others were injured when a metal container carrying gelatin sticks, mounted on a tractor, exploded on the Umarkhed-Dhanki road in Maharashtra's Yavatmal district on Saturday.

According to the police, the blast took place after an air cylinder near the tyre of the tractor went off while welding work was in progress. The tractor, bearing registration number MH 29 V 2528, was owned by Apparao Bokse and was being used for blasting work.

The force of the explosion was severe, with some of those standing near the vehicle being thrown about 20 feet away, the police said.

Among the seriously injured are Anis (17), Wasid Khan Rashid Khan (32), Sheikh Javed Sheikh Babu (19), Sai Johan Sai Mobin (14), Salman Khan Sherukhan (34), tractor owner Apparao Bokse (54) and his son Vaibhav Bokse, a resident of Baladi.

The injured were taken for medical treatment. Further details about the condition of the injured and the sequence of events leading to the blast were not immediately available.