Four workers killed in blast at fireworks unit near Sattur

Four workers were killed and one injured in a fire accident at Guru Star fireworks unit in Banthuvarpatti near Sattur on June 29 morning.

Virudhunagar Superintendent of Police, K. Ferozekhan Abdullah, said that friction while mixing chemicals at the unit, which held a licence from the District Revenue officer (DRO), could have triggered the explosion. All the four workers, including the manager of the unit, were killed on the spot. They have been identified as M. Rajkumar, 43 of Achchankulam; K. Marichamy, 40, of Nadu Soorangudi; M. Selvakumar, 35, and M. Mohan, 30, from Chathrapatti.

Meanwhile, the watchman of the unit, K. Ramachandran, 60, sustained injuries from the flying debris after the explosion. Three working sheds of the unit were razed.

Sattur Taluk police have booked the unit’s licence-holder, Sahadevan, under different Sections of the Indian Penal Code, including culpable homicide not amounting to murder, and provisions of the Indian Explosives Act. His son, Gurusamy Pandian, has been picked up for an inquiry.

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has announced a compensation of ₹3 lakh each to the family of the deceased. Collector V.P. Jeyaseelan handed over the compensation from the Chief Minister’s Public Relief Fund to them.

Various precautionary measures were taken by the district administration to avert such accidents. Four special teams were formed to inspect fireworks units, and action was taken against the violators, the Collector said.

Licences suspended

The licences of 86 units, out of 439, that were found violating safety norms were suspended during the inspections conducted by special teams and revenue officials in the last three months.

Action had also been initiated against 56 units that were found flouting safety rules, during inspections by officials of the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health. The Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation had ordered the suspension of licence for 12 of these units.

The Collector has instructed all fireworks units to put up notice boards at their entrances, furnishing details such as the name of the licencee, the licence number, the type of licence and its validity, the licensing authority, and the permitted number of workers. Action would be taken against those who do not comply with the directive within a week, he added.

Leaders condole deaths

Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan condoled the death of the four persons, and expressed concerns over the recurring fire accidents in Virudhunagar district. He alleged that the Tamil Nadu government had not been ensuring the adherence of fireworks manufacturing units to safety protocols.

Expressing his condolences, TMC (Moopanar) president G.K. Vasan urged the State government to ensure that periodic audits of cracker manufacturing units were conducted to monitor their compliance with safety standards.