At least 18 people killed in Indian factory explosion

Leela Devi, centre, with her arms outstretched, wails after hearing of her husband’s death in the explosion (AP Photo)

An explosion triggered a fire in a pharmaceutical plant in southern India, killing at least 18 workers, police said on Thursday.

The death toll rose from 15 as three of the 40 injured in the fire on Wednesday in the chemical reactor of the plant in Andhra Pradesh state died in hospital on Thursday, police said.