Three persons were killed and one was injured when a cracker unit went up in flames at Malur in the district today, police said.
The victims, all of them from nearby places, were working in one of the sheds in the unit located near Pathanapuram town, when it caught fire and exploded.
The deceased included the 20-year-old son of the unit owner.
Local people said the unit had a pile of crackers to be supplied for temple festivals. The injured were rushed to Taluk hospital at Punalur.
Though the cracker unit had some workers from Tamil Nadu, they were working in another shed situated near the one that caught fire and exploded. The district asked the RDO to probe and submit an initial report about the incident by tomorrow, official sources said.