Death Toll in Illegal Firecracker Unit Blast in Tamil Nadu Rises to 3
The injured co-owner of the site, identified as R Ramachandran (40), who was admitted at the Virudhunagar Government Medical College Hospital in critical condition with 60 per cent burns on July 26, succumbed to his injuries on Monday
Sivakasi: Rescue operations intensified on Monday at the site of an illegal fireworks manufacturing unit near Sivakasi, where a massive explosion on Sunday claimed three lives. Emergency workers deployed a drone and drained an irrigation well after relatives reported two additional workers missing.
The injured co-owner of the site, identified as R Ramachandran (40), who was admitted at the Virudhunagar Government Medical College Hospital in critical condition with 60 per cent burns on July 26, succumbed to his injuries on Monday, a senior police official told reporters.
His brother, R Ramprakash (38), and an unidentified worker were killed in the blast on July 26.
With relatives coming forward to report two more individuals employed at the unit as missing, fire and rescue personnel launched a widened search operation. A drone was deployed to scan the surrounding farmlands, while crews began pumping water from a nearby irrigation well to ascertain if the missing workers were thrown into it by the sheer force of the explosion.
The police official said scattered bits of body parts have been sent for DNA analysis to figure out if more deaths have occurred. "We are awaiting the results. So far we could confirm three deaths," he added.
The blast, which residents reported hearing around 8.30 am on Sunday, sent thick white fumes several kms into the air.
Firemen at the scene noted that the impact completely charred one worker inside the shed, while the other was blown apart. The explosion gutted a parked van, hurling its parts nearly 20 meters away, partially burnt a two-wheeler, and shattered the window panes of two houses in the vicinity.
Police investigations have revealed that the brothers set up the fireworks operation stealthily, using an agricultural shed near their nursery as a front.
According to officials, the workers had commenced operations as early as 3 am and had illegally tapped into free electricity meant solely for agricultural use to power the shed.
Virudhunagar MLA P Selvam visited the site to oversee the ongoing rescue efforts. Addressing the incident, he stated that the Sivakasi East police had already uncovered 10 similar illegal fireworks manufacturing units in the area over the past few weeks.
"With Deepavali only a few months away, I have asked Gautam Goyal, Virudhunagar Superintendent of Police, to intensify checks at the fireworks industry to prevent such accidents," Selvam said.
Police are continuing their probe into the incident to establish the identities of the unknown and missing workers, as well as the exact cause of the ignition.