At least 23 workers died, and over 12 were injured in a massive explosion at the Vanaja fireworks unit in Kattanarpatti village, Virudhunagar, on Sunday.
At least five policemen, media personnel, including senior photojournalist KK Sundar, and several fire and rescue service workers suffered injuries in a second blast at the private firecracker unit during the rescue operation around 7 PM.
23 killed, 12 injured in firecracker factory blast in Virudhunagar
According to the initial inquiry, the incident occurred around 3 PM when about 50 employees were working at the DRO-licensed unit owned by Muthumanickam, who is 52 years old.
The blast seems to have started in the front veranda area, where workers were handling raw materials. The blast’s impact was so intense that it destroyed at least four rooms and leveled several nearby structures. Fire and rescue personnel fought the flames for several hours.
Officials found 16 dead bodies, identify victims
Police have identified 16 bodies so far. Among the deceased are K Velsamy (56) and S Porkodi (63), both from Thiruthangal village; K Pandiammal (55), M Bakyalakshmi (40), K Kaliammal (45), M Indhurani (46), R Mariammal (57), K Maruthan (50), his wife Nagammal (48), K Pandiammal (54), A Janaki (55), and I Nachiammal (55) from Servaikaranpatti. The charred bodies moved to the Government Virudhunagar Medical College Hospital, where the injured also receiving treatment.
The injured include Saratha, Panjavarnam, Petchiammal, Sangli Thangam, Veera bathran, Arun kumar, and a 12-year-old boy named V Sathish, who is the son of one of the workers and was playing nearby.
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