Chennai residents celebrate the festival of lights, Deepavali, with fireworks and bursting of crackers across the city, filling the streets with thick smoke. Vehicles are seen navigating through the smoke-covered roads as reduced visibility and deteriorating air quality add to the festive atmosphere in Chennai on Sunday.
Chennai: A 13-year-old boy and a 50-year-old man died of burn injuries in Tamil Nadu during the Diwali weekend, the state health department said. The 50-year-old was among the seven people injured in a fire at a cracker shop near Panruti in Cuddalore district. The 13-year-old boy died in a cylinder explosion at his home near Villupuram on Saturday, and his parents, who also suffered burn injuries, are undergoing treatment at Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital.
Five of the injured, with severe burns, were brought to Chennai for treatment, and the condition of one patient remains critical. On Sunday, Karunamurthy from Cuddalore was declared dead by doctors at Kilpauk Medical College Hospital.
Emergency Management and Research Institute (EMRI) data show that Diwali day brought nearly twice as many emergency calls to the 108 ambulance control room as on a normal day. The emergency service also reported at least 34% more hospital admissions and sharp jumps in trauma, assault and burns. The control room received 21,302 calls on Diwali day, compared with 11,059 on a normal day. The Tamil Nadu fire and rescue services department control room received 160 emergency calls on Sunday. Of these, 104 were related to fires caused by bursting firecrackers. Ambulances ferried 5,968 patients, up from 4,463 on a normal day and 5,445 on Diwali 2025. Trauma admissions, including road accident cases, were 2,020, nearly three times the normal 728 and 16.2% higher than last year. Admissions for injuries following assaults were 709 (daily average is 184), and burn admissions were 207 (daily average is eight). Between 7am on Nov7 and 7am on Nov 9 the emergency service received 39,634 calls, including 6,317 for trauma, 1,627 for assault injuries and 462 for burns. Thanjavur Government Medical College Hospital was the busiest, with 237 inpatients. Madurai followed with 206, Chengalpet with 185, the govt hospital at Periyar Nagar with 138, and Thoothukudi with 91.
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