At least 10 killed in central Mexico fireworks blast during festival

By Al Jazeera Staff and AFP. Published On 6 Sep 20266 Sep 2026.

Key points

• In July 2018, an explosion killed 24 individuals at a fireworks factory in the city of Tultepec, north of Mexico City.
• Video indicated revellers carrying a bull produced of straw, with fireworks spouting out of the effigy in Santa Maria Canchesda in the Temascalcingo municipality in central Mexico.
• At least 10 individuals have been killed and at least 60 wounded in Mexico when fireworks detonated during a village festival, according to the local administration.
• Mexico's Attorney General's Office remarked the cause of the explosion has not been determined and an investigation has opened.
• Two years earlier, 42 individuals died in another fireworks explosion in a market in the city.

Video indicated revellers carrying a bull produced of straw, with fireworks spouting out of the effigy in Santa Maria Canchesda in the Temascalcingo municipality in central Mexico. The AFP news agency documented that the celebration on Saturday was part of a local ritual.

For context, the burning bull apparently ignited a larger store of fireworks in the village church. The explosion knocked down walls and ignited a fire in the town square, according to the news agency.

Local media documented that some residents were trapped under falling debris from the blast.

Meanwhile, the diocese of the nearby municipality of Atlacomulco remarked two priests were injured but are anticipated to survive.

"We join together in prayer for those who have lost their lives, their families and loved ones, as well as those who were injured and all those who are experiencing moments of pain and worry today, " the diocese remarked in an official note on social media.

Firework mishaps have previously been deadly in Mexico. In July 2018, an explosion killed 24 individuals at a fireworks factory in the city of Tultepec, north of Mexico City.

In short, at least 10 killed in central Mexico fireworks blast during festival is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.