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This is the terrifying moment a Spanish fireworks factory was engulfed in a massive fireball following an explosion, which left one dead and four others injured.
The blast occurred at around 11.25am on Thursday at a warehouse in Fontecalent near holiday hotspot Alicante in south-eastern Spain.
Video footage captured by factory staff shows a massive plume of black smoke rising through the air.
A separate clip filmed by workers escaping the blast by car shows debris flying as fireworks explode in the sky.
Spanish police also shared footage and images showing the aftermath of the explosion, in which the structure of the incinerated warehouse can be seen.
Other pictures and videos show emergency services working at the site of the explosion.
The incident killed the owner of the company, Pedro Luis Sirvent, 69, who was a well-known figure in the Spanish pyrotechnic sector.
A 68-year-old man is in a serious condition, Spanish newspaper El Pais reported, and has had to be transferred by helicopter to the Burn Unit of La Fe Hospital in Valencia.
Three workers are said to have suffered from minor injuries.
One person was killed today and four more were injured following an explosion at a fireworks factory in Alicante, Spain
The explosion occurred at around 11.25 am at a warehouse belonging to the Hermanos Sirvent company
The man killed was company owner Pedro Luis Servent
Around 100 firefighters, police and paramedics rushed to the site, with fire crews successfully stopping the inferno from ripping through surrounding warehouses storing fireworks.
Meanwhile, authorities stated that only ‘localised’ structural damage was caused.
Rail traffic had to be suspended for several hours due to debris falling on nearby tracks.
Alicante mayor Luis Barcala praised the heroic efforts of first responders.
‘They entered the burning fireworks warehouse to extract the injured’, he said.
Police are currently investigating the cause of the explosion.
Video footage captured by factory staff shows a massive plume of black smoke rising through the air
Authorities said that structural damage was ‘localised’
Around 100 firefighters, police and paramedics rushed to the site
Four people were injured as a result of the explosion at the fireworks warehouse
Alicante mayor Luis Barcala praised the heroic efforts of first responders
Deceased factory owner Sirvent founded the company Pirotécnica Alicantina de Fuegos y Artificios in 1982 with his brother César, which moved to Fontcalent five years later.
In 2019, the company changed its name to its current name of Hermanos Sirvent.
The dramatic incident in Spain’s Costa Blanca today comes several months after a fireworks factory in Bulgaria exploded, forcing a mass evacuation.
Two employees, one man and one woman, were reportedly severely injured and had to be transferred to the nearby Pirogov Emergency Hospital in Sofia suffered third-degree burns.
