2 dead, three injured in explosion at stone quarry in Pudukkottai district

Sources said the workers had drilled holes on the rock and placed explosives inside them on Wednesday. They then carried out the blast in a portion of the quarry, owned by one Muthusamy. 

The quarry manager Arumugam and four other workers visited the quarry on Thursday to take bath in its pond. However, a sudden lightning strike hit the quarry which reportedly triggered the unexploded explosives. 

In the impact, a rock was blown to bits and the men present nearby were thrown 50 feet away. While Arumugam (50) was killed on the spot after being hit by a boulder, Palanivel (60) of Themmavur, Ganesan (40) of Uppiliyapuram, Shanmugam (34) of Kulathur and Srinivasan (33) of Thuvakudi sustained injuries.

The co-workers rushed the injured to the Pudukkottai Government Hospital. However, Palanivel succumbed to his injuries. 

On information, the Vellanur police rushed to the spot and held inquires. They also secured the quarry owner Muthusamy and are questioning him. Meanwhile, Theerthayee Ammal (70), mother of Arumugam, reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest and died after she heard the news about his death.