Three children were killed in a blaze sparked by firecrackers they were bursting in West Bengal’s Howrah district on Friday evening, an official said.

The incident took place in Uluberia when the children of the same locality were bursting firecrackers as sparks fell on some fireworks stored nearby, triggering a blaze that engulfed an adjacent house and the three children.

The children were taken to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared them dead, he said.

Two fire tenders were deployed at the spot and succeeded in containing the blaze, a fire brigade official said.

West Bengal Fire Services Minister Sujit Bose said, “Three fatalities have been confirmed in the blaze. It is a tragic incident. I will visit the area.”