Four youths were charred to death in a fire in a waste plastic segregation unit at Kaduvetti, near Thiruverkadu, on Thursday.
Sources in the Thiruverkadu police said the fire broke out around 2.30 a.m. at the unit at Sundaracholapuram on Avadi Main Road.
It is run by S. Immanuel (39), a resident of Sundaracholapuram. There were 30 persons employed in the unit. Often five workers, including a security guard, stayed overnight on the premises.
S. Sarath Kumar (26) from Kancheepuram; S. Raghu Kumar (26) from Tiruchendur; and Amar alias Pradha (26) and Raja alias Janantha (25), both from Odissa, were sleeping in a small room in the unit packed with plastics, rubber items and paper. They got trapped and were asphyxiated.
The guard Chithiraivel (32) from Tiruchendur escaped as he was sleeping outside.
Fifteen fire tenders put out the blaze after two hours, and recovered the bodies.
The police have arrested Immanuel for causing death due to negligence.