DINDIGUL: A 40-year-old man and his 35-year-old wife died in a firecracker blast at their cracker shop in Sempatti on Tuesday.Sources said Jayaraman and Nagarani were living with two daughters and a son on the first floor of Jayaraman’s cracker shop. “Jayaraman, the west district secretary of Hindu Munnani, ran a shop named Sri Madurai Meenakshi Amman for 10 years.
On Tuesday evening, the neighbours heard an explosion at Jayaraman’s store and saw that the entire building had collapsed. A shopping complex and a house nearby also collapsed. Over 30 firemen arrived at the spot and put out the fire in a three-hour operation. However, they failed to save Jayaraman and his wife in time. Their bodies were recovered from the rubble later. The couple’s children, who were playing at a neighbour’s house, escaped the explosion.
A team led by Superintendent of Police V Baskaran came to the spot, witnessed the rescue operation and inquired about the incident. Sempatti police registered a case and an investigation is on.Minister for Rural Development I Periyasamy also came to the spot and extended his condolences to the family members of the deceased.