Story highlights Blaze erupts at a fireworks display at a temple in southern India

Hundreds of people are injured

(CNN) A fireworks display exploded during a festival at a temple in southern India early Sunday, killing 98 people and injuring more than 540, authorities said.

The fire started at 3:15 a.m. at the Puttingal temple in Kollam, in Kerala state .

Indian Prime Narendra Modi called the fire "heart-rending and shocking beyond words."

"My thoughts are with families of the deceased and prayers with the injured," he said in a statement.

Sparks from the display ignited a magazine of fireworks, causing a bigger blaze, said K. Laljy, a local police official.

Read More