Sri Lanka, March 3 -- A locally manufactured gun (galkatas) capable of firing 12-bore ammunition exploded at a blacksmith shop in the Puwakdanda Second Wiskampura area of the Beliatta Police Division yesterday (02) around noon, injuring the blacksmith, police reported.

The 49-year-old blacksmith, identified as a resident of Bogaha Koratuwa, Puwakdanda, is suspected to have been either manufacturing or repairing the firearm when the explosion occurred.

Following the incident, his family members rushed him to Tangalle Base Hospital in a 1990 Suva Seriya ambulance. Hospital sources confirmed that he sustained serious abdominal injuries due to small metal fragments from the explosion.

Authorities have launched an investigation into the inc...