The incident happened at a shop located on Kishkinta-Darkas Road near Tambaram. Police sources said the scrap shop used to collect old chemical containers and tins from the nearby factories and sell them.

On Friday, 15 workers were cleaning the chemical containers when suddenly a few tins started exploding triggering a fire.

It soon spread to other barrels and the locals had to call Fire and Rescue personnel from Tambaram station to douse the fire. Meanwhile, seven workers including three women suffered minor injuries and were admitted to the Chromepet government hospital.

Peerkankaranai police have registered a case and further inquiry is on. Three years ago a few people were injured after chemical barrels exploded while cleaning in the same locality.