LAHORE: Gas balloons released during Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif's inauguration of an overhead bridge near Walton Road exploded after landing in the area near Kamaha road on Sunday, resulting in burn injuries to at least 17 people nearby, DawnNews reported.

Area residents shifted the injured to nearby hospitals on a self-help basis where they were provided medical treatment.

Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif took notice of the incident and sought a report from the district administration.

Sharif demanded answers regarding the nature and kind of gas filled in the balloons and warned of firm action against those held responsible.

A police probe into the incident went underway.

Earlier reports had claimed that the number of persons wounded in the balloon blasts was 42.