Three killed in blast in stone quarry at Aviyur in Virudhunagar, bodies blown to pieces

CHENNAI: Three people were killed and some injured in a blast, which occurred in a stone quarry at Aviyur near Kariapatti in Virudhunagar district and in the impact, their body parts got strewn around, with some buried in debris, police said.

Visuals of the blast captured by a nearby CCTV camera was widely shared on social media.

The death toll may rise, according to sources.

It occurred when those ill fated victims entered a store room where explosive substances were kept for blasting rocky surface in the quarry, which's about 200 meters away.

Official sources said it's a licensed quarry and the explosion could have occurred due to mishandling of explosives.

Many locals took to the road near the quarry and blocked vehicular traffic urging the immediate need for closure of the quarry as it’s hazardous.

Fire and Rescue Services personnel and officials rushed to the spot to find the exact cause of the explosion.

Virudhunagar SP K. Feroze Khan Abdullah after inspecting the explosion site near the stone quarry at Kalkurichi village near Kariapatti, said the explosion occurred at around 8.15 AM, when those victims were engaged in off loading the explosive material in the store room. 

Friction could have fuelled explosion. 

However, the exact cause of explosion is yet to be ascertained. Aruppukottai SFO Ramaraj said the station received fire call at 10.45 AM.

The deceased victims have been identified as Kandhasamy (47), Durai (25) and Gurusamy (60).