"Four people were killed and 97 others injured today, Friday, in an explosion inside a fireworks factory in Sakarya state, northwest of Turkey," said Turkish Health Minister Fakhreddin Kuja.

According to the Anatolia Agency, the Turkish authorities have sent two helicopters and more than 80 ambulances and 11 medical teams to the site of the explosion.

The governor of Sakarya Jettin Aoktay Calderm announced in a tweet on Twitter that the injured were taken to hospitals so far, due to the explosion in the factory located in the district of Hanak in the state, adding that 150 to 200 people were inside the factory at the time of the explosion.

A large cloud of smoke rose several meters in the sky, while firecrackers were heard from inside the factory, according to pictures broadcast by Turkish TV channels and activists on social media.

#BREAKING: At least 56 injured, up to 150 people trapped following explosion at fireworks factory in Turkey's Sakarya: Sakarya Governor Kaldırım

pic.twitter.com/5yoHzCx07a

- IEN (@BreakingIEN) July 3, 2020

UPDATE - ⚠️☣ Chemical explosion and radiation hazard exposed after the explosion in #Sakarya!

Sakarya Governor Çetin Pavement said that there are 150-200 people in the factory. 3hree ministers go to Hendek on the orders of Erdogan. #Turkey # explosionpic.twitter.com / yzA6rVSXea

- ISCResearch (@ISCResearch) July 3, 2020

According to eyewitnesses, the residents felt the explosion up to a distance of 50 km, while some initially believed that what was happening was an earthquake.

In a sign of the authorities' concern about the accident, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent 3 ministers to the scene.

Two explosions occurred in the same factory in 2009 and 2014, killing two people and wounding about 40 people, according to Turkish media.