Anakapalli, April 13 -- The death toll in the fire at a firecracker manufacturing unit in Andhra Pradesh's Anakapalli district has risen to eight, officials said, adding that seven others sustained critical injuries in the explosion that occurred on Sunday.

Fire officials rushed to the scene upon receiving information about the explosion at the firecracker unit located at Kailasapatnam, under the Kotavuratla mandal of the district.

According to Fire Officer D. Niranjan Reddy, the cause of the blast appears to be due to manual error.

"Today, around 1 pm, we received a call saying that a major explosion has taken place. We immediately rushed to the spot. Three fire tenders and 50 personnel were deployed. Eight people lost their lives, an...