<div><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><b>At least 18 people have died after an explosion at a fireworks factory in central Thailand today, a rescue worker said.</b></span><br></div><div><br></div><div>“Eighteen found dead, confirmed,” the rescue worker said, revising his earlier estimate of 20.</div><div><br></div><div>The blast occurred at around 3pm local time near Sala Khao township, in central Suphan Buri province.</div><div><br></div><div>Police told AFP authorities were still checking the official death toll.</div><div><br></div><div>“There were deaths, we are checking how many people died,” police colonel Theerapoj Rawangban told AFP.</div><div><br></div><div>“We do not see more damage toward other houses or people who live in the (nearby) community,” he added.</div><div><br></div><div>There was no indication of what may have caused the explosion.</div><div><br></div><div>Images shared by the local rescue service showed metal debris littered on the ground and a huge plume of black smoke.</div><div><br></div><div>Explosions at workshops producing firecrackers and other pyrotechnics are not uncommon in Thailand.</div><div><br></div><div>Ten people died, and more than 100 were injured, after an explosion in a fireworks warehouse in Sungai Kolok town in southern Narathiwat province last year.</div><div><br></div><div>The Southeast Asian kingdom also has a poor safety record in the construction sector and deadly accidents are common. - AFP&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>bnbd24/fas</div>