Three persons, including an aged woman, were injured when some “chemical waste” exploded inside an empty dumper bin in the thickly populated Pethaniapuram here on Thursday. After cordoning off the area, the personnel from the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad examined the bin. A sniffer dog was also pressed into service. Scientists from the Forensic Sciences Department collected samples from the spot for analysis.
Senior police officers, led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) R.Thirunavukkarasu rushed to the spot. The police said at around 9.15 a.m. a deafening noise was heard from the empty bin placed on the busy Ayyanar Koil Street, causing panic. Passers-by ran helter-skelter as the lid of the bin flew to a height of about 10 feet.
The explosion was powerful enough to cause severe damage to the steel bin, they added. According to Ramu, a shopkeeper, at around 8 a.m. the conservancy workers from the Corporation had lifted the bin, filled with garbage. After clearing the waste at Vellakal, they positioned the empty bin back in its place. At around 9.15 a.m., when a person identified as Murthy alias Ramamurthy, reportedly dumped some unused “chemicals” from his shop in the dumper bin, it exploded, the shopkeeper said.
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A 70-year-old woman, Mariammal, who was crossing the spot suffered bruises on her forehead and fainted. Similarly, Pitchai alias Danasekaran also sustained injuries and was rushed to the hospital.
Mr.Thirunavukkarasu told reporters that the ‘chemical waste’ dumped in the empty bin could have burst. Ruling out the use of any explosive material, he said a team of officers would carry out a discreet probe with the shopkeeper identified by others.
Meanwhile, fearing trouble, the shopkeeper who also suffered injuries, fled from the scene.
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Many tiny shops and lathes in the locality were engaged in colouring fibre sheets of different sizes. They purchase fibre sheets and after mixing colours, they paint them and sell. The sharp rise in temperature might have led to the minor blast when the chemical waste was dumped in the empty bin, the officer noted.
The Karimedu police have registered a case.