20200227 Two charred to death as fire erupts in chemical unit
India Feb 27 2020 “Building” “Factories”
Dead : dead 1 to 4 Burnout : 1 to 29 Injured : injured 1 to 9
Two charred to death as fire erupts in chemical unit
Updated: 2020–02–28
SURAT: Two persons were killed and two others received serious injuries in a huge explosion at a chemical factory at Pandesara GIDC on Thursday.
Surat Municipal Corporation’s (SMC) fire and emergency services department officials said the explosion took place due to a short-circuit in the electricity meter box at Aceto Chem Private Limited, a chemical company owned by Bansi Patel, at Pandesara GIDC at about 11:30am. Fire officials stated that a portion of the three-storey chemical company collapsed after the blast. It took three hours for the firefighters to extinguish the fire.
About 50 workers were present in the factory when the fire took place but majority of them managed to escape. The explosion was heard in a five kilometre radius of the GIDC estate. However, Pappu Singh, 28, and Amod Singh, 35, both residents of Pandesara, were killed. Raju Paswan, 40, with serious burns injuries was admitted to a private hospital and Amar Singh Nisar, 35, to New Civil Hospital after he fractured both his legs while trying to jump from the first floor of the chemical company.
Vidhi Chaudhary, deputy commissioner of police (zone-3), told TOI, “The chemical substance coming out of the factory was highly acidic. There was a burning sensation in my legs when I accidentally stepped into a pool of chemical. Two workers were killed in the fire. We have sought a report from Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) to know the exact reason behind the fire. We will decide on the course of action against the owner of the chemical factory after receiving the report.”
Fire officer Dipak Makhajani told TOI, “The company owned by Bansi Patel manufactures coloured dyes and chemicals for processing of finished fabrics in textile mills. There was a burning sensation in the eyes of people due to the hazardous nature of the chemical. Firefighters faced lot of difficulties in dousing the fire. The explosion could have occurred due to a short-circuit in electricity cables.”
Web Source: The times of India