Four persons were killed in a blast in an illegal fireworks unit at Thayilpatti near Sattur on Monday.
Police identified the deceased as A. Selvamani, 33, and her son Regabiya Solmon, 5, Karpagam, 34, and T. Surya, 25. One R. Solaiammal, 60, suffered a fracture in her leg.
The explosion was reported at 8.30 a.m. in a house where the family members of Surya were involved in making crackers illegally, District Revenue Officer R. Mangalaramasubramanian said.
Stocking of huge quantity of finished/semi-finished goods might have caused the strong impact of the blast, in which two houses were razed to the ground and three others suffered partial damage, the police said.
While three persons were killed on the spot, Surya, who had sustained 70% burns, succumbed to injuries at Sivakasi Government Hospital. All the four bodies were kept at the hospital.
Fire and Rescue Services personnel from Vembakottai and Sivakasi put out the flames. Virudhunagar Superintendent of Police M. Manohar inspected the spot.
In another accident reported at Chidambaram Fireworks at Tiruvengadapuram near Sivakasi around 4.30 p.m., V. Gurusamy (45) was killed.
The police said friction while handling chemicals led to the fire. The worker, who sustained 90% burns, later succumbed at Sivakasi GH.
Maraneri police are investigating.
