In a shocking piece of news, at least nine people have died and over dozens have been injured in a blast at a firecracker unit in the Kancheepuram district of Tamil Nadu. The incident had happened on Wednesday - March 22 and the police have apprehended the factory's owner. 

The unit was located in Kuruvimalai village and it was owned by Narendran. The police said that about 25 people were working in the unit and it is yet to be known whether the factory had a license to produce crackers. According to reports, on Wednesday afternoon, the crackers that were kept outside to dry in the sunlight caught fire and the inferno spread to crackers stored in a godown. 

The people who were in the godown got trapped and the fire blast killed several people. Initially, it was reported that six people were killed and now, the death toll rose to nine. 15 others are getting treated at a hospital with severe burns. Police have identified three of the deceased as Gajendran, Boopathy, and Vijaya. 

After receiving information about the fire accident from the local people, 25 personnel from the fire and rescue department had rushed to the spot and they brought the fire under control after thirty minutes. The injured were taken to the Kancheepuram government hospital.

Kancheepuram Collector Aarthi visited the spot and said, "Rescue operation is going on. Spot is clear. Police would investigate more on this. Post that we would know more details." On the other hand, Narendran, the owner of the unit, was apprehended by the Kancheepuram Taluk police and the officials are investigating him. 

Tamil Nadu | Six dead, several injured in an explosion at a firecracker warehouse in Kuruvimalai village of Kancheepuram district.

Kancheepuram Collector M Aarthi says, "Rescue operation is going on. Spot is clear. Police would investigate more on this. Post that we would know… pic.twitter.com/NGlL665WqO

— ANI (@ANI) March 22, 2023