A massive explosion gutted Mexico's biggest fireworks market, killing at least 31 people and injuring 72, the authorities said.

The conflagration in the Mexico City suburb of Tultepec set off a quick-fire series of multicolored blasts that sent a vast cloud of smoke billowing over the capital.

The market had been packed with customers buying pyrotechnics for traditional end-of-year festivities. Christmas and New Year parties in many Latin American countries often wrap up with clattering firework blasts.

 

Mexico's President Enrique Pena Nieto tweeted his condolences to the families of those killed and his wishes for the injured to recover.

From a few kilometers (miles) away, the multiple explosions that started at 2:50 pm (2050 GMT) almost looked festive, alight in blue, red and white. They were anything but. The entire market is gone. It had 300 stands.

Alejandra Pretel, a resident in Tultepec, told AFP that she didn't realize at first that the explosions were coming from the large fireworks market. "We thought it was a nearby fireworks workshop," she said. Minutes later, it became evident the market was being destroyed.

The head of the civil protection service, Luis Felipe Puente, said crews had to wait for all the fireworks to finish exploding before they could extinguish the flames.

Tultepec, located outside of Mexico city is famous for its fireworks industry and annual fireworks festival. 

Source: AFP