CHENNAI: Atleast eight people including women died and two others are battling for their life at the hospital after a spark at a cracker shop in Sivakasi spiralled into a fire that gutted the shop and the adjacent building.
Initial reports said the fire started when crackers were being unloaded from a truck on Thursday afternoon. The crackers stored in the place quickly caught fire leading to a blaze that took over an hour to douse.
By then, the shop and a scanning centre next to it were gutted. Fire service personnel and others managed to rescue 10 injured persons, who were rushed to the government general hospital in Sivakasi. However, eight of them, including women, suffered fatal injuries, and died soon afterwards.
Officials said the other two are battling for their life at the hospital.
Preliminary investigation pointed to carelessness on the part of the shop owner, the officials added.
Sivakasi, the cracker hub of India, has come alive ahead of the Deepavali (Diwali) festival that is just a fortnight away. There were few minor incidents that were reported this season, but today’s accident is the worst so far.