Virudhunagar firecracker unit blast: Toll climbs to 25, bodies charred beyond recognition

Virudhunagar (Tamil Nadu): With most bodies charred beyond recognition, identification remains difficult, police said on Monday, as the toll in the massive explosion at a fireworks unit near Kattanarpatti here rose to 25.

The accident is one of the deadliest industrial disasters in the region in recent years.

“Bodies were so badly charred that we were able to identify mostly with jewellery that the victims were wearing,” a police official told PTI.

He said that the families have not yet claimed the bodies due to the uncertainly in the identities.

The factory owner is absconding, he added.

The accident occurred at the Vanaja firecracker unit, owned by one Muthumanickam, which functions under the Vachakarapatti police station limits.

The unit is reportedly licensed by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO), Nagpur.

Post-mortem reports have established that the 25 victims, include 22 women and three men, the police official added.

Eight workers, mostly women, are critically injured with 60 per cent burn injuries. Twelve others, including eight policemen, were injured in a second blast on Sunday evening while rescue operations were underway.

Rescue operations were severely hampered for hours, as unexploded materials continued to detonate.

A second blast at 7.20 pm, triggered as an earthmover was clearing debris, caused chaos and injured several responders, including a revenue official.

Meanwhile, sources said about 1,000 people, including the families of the victims and residents of nearby villages, are threatening a road roko, demanding the arrest of the owner of the factory.

Local eyewitnesses, including Ranganathan from the nearby Seervaikarampatti village, described hearing a massive blast that sent "thick black smoke" into the sky.

"Nothing was recognisable. We saw bodies being loaded four at a time into vehicles," he told PTI Videos.

Many of the deceased were from Seervaikarampatti village, with residents claiming that at least 20 victims belonged to their village.

Among those killed was 46-year-old Indrani, a veteran worker of 25 years.

"My mother was the sole breadwinner. My father is disabled and stays home. I have an MSc degree, but I’m working at a petrol bunk to help out, and we haven't even paid my brother's school fees yet," said Madhubala, Indrani’s daughter, while pleading for government employment assistance.

Virudhunagar Collector V P Jeyaseelan confirmed that the unit was operating without permission on a rest day.

Preliminary findings suggest the blast originated in a chemical mixing shed, where nearly 40 workers were busy making crackers, a violation of safety norms that typically limit occupancy to four workers per shed.

"Had these workers followed primary safety norms, the casualties could have been minimal," a senior official stated.

Chief Minister M K Stalin has ordered a high-level probe and directed ministers to oversee relief efforts. ‘ The tragedy follows a similar accident in Vembakottai just days earlier, which claimed four lives, intensifying calls for stricter enforcement of safety regulations in the district’s firecracker hub.

The explosion occurred at approximately 3.15 pm on Sunday. Although the fireworks industry is officially shut on Sundays, over 100 workers were reportedly engaged in production.