Forensic probe begins into Tata's iPhone plant after fire incident

The fire incident affects Apple's India suppliers

By Akash Pandey
Sep 29, 2024


What's the story

A forensic investigation is now underway into the fire, that broke out at Tata Electronics' Hosur factory in Tamil Nadu on Saturday.

The factory, which makes components for Apple iPhones, was badly hit by the fire.

Reports suggest the blaze started close to a building in the Tata complex, which is all set to kick off full-scale iPhone production in the coming months.


Operations paused

Production halt and investigation status

The factory usually takes a breather on Sundays, and it's still a toss-up whether the state authorities will give the green light for production to kick off again by Monday.As of now, neither Tata Electronics nor Apple has replied to the questions about what went down.The root of the fire is still being probed, but Tata Electronics has promised to do everything it can to keep its employees and stakeholders safe.

Supply disruption

Fire's impact on Apple's supply chain

The fire at the Hosur factory is a big blow for Apple's suppliers in India, especially since the tech giant is trying to move its supply chain out of China.A fire official said the blaze began in a chemical storage area.This incident comes on the heels of the massive fire at Foxlink, another Apple supplier, last year, which led to production being halted after part of their Andhra Pradesh assembly facility collapsed.

Aftermath

Fire extinguished, workers hospitalized

According to K.M. Sarayu, a district administrative official, the fire at Tata Electronics' Hosur plant has been "completely put out," and the fumes have stopped.Two workers from the plant who were hospitalized have been discharged today.Sarayu also confirmed that a forensic team from Chennai has been dispatched to the location for further investigation.


Facility details

Impact on surrounding buildings and workers

We still don't know if the fire has impacted nearby buildings, including one that was supposed to kick off iPhone assembly by year-end.Police on the scene confirmed that there were no casualties or injuries from the incident.However, around 11 workers who were close to the accident site experienced suffocation and were taken to the Government General Hospital.