Chlorine gas leak: 26 taken ill

Theft of cylinder valve caused accident, says PCMC

Chlorine gas leak: 26 taken ill

Theft of cylinder valve caused accident, says PCMC

Atleast 56 persons were taken ill after a cylinder containing highly poisonous chlorine started leaking last morning at an effluent treatment plant in the Bhatnagar area of Pimpri-Chinchwad.

The cylinder leak was reported around 4 am when the local residents complained of coughing, nausea and giddiness. The fire brigade rushed to the spot.u00a0 The leakage triggered a scare in the area as the gas had formed thick yellow clouds in the air. As a precautionary measure, the slum dwellers living near the plant were evacuated from the vicinity.

"Had the fire brigade not arrived on time, we would have lost our lives," said 25-year-old Rajesh Rana, who is still under observation at the Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial hospital. Another victim includes a 4-month-old baby Antariksha. Her mother said, "This has been a difficult time. This incident really shook us up."

Municipal authorities stated that the cylinder valve made from brass might have been stolen overnight that resulted in to the gas leak.u00a0

Municipal Commissioner of Pimpri-Chinchwad Ashish Sharma said, "We suspect that the valve might have been stolen. The blame lies on the agency that was appointed for the maintenance of the plant. We will file a complaint with the police against the agency concerned."

Officials from the Pimpri police station said till late in the evening yesterday, nobody had come forward to register any complaint regarding the valve theft and gas leakage incident. "We are looking into the matter seriously, but no FIR has not been registered so far," the officer said.

The fire brigade swung into action in no time "We saw high quantity of chlorine fumes emanating from the gas tunnel. The cylinder carried around 500 kilos of gas but a small quantity leaked into the air. There was no leakage from the other cylinders stored in the plant," said Pimpri-Chinchwad's Chief Fire Officer Kiran Gawde.u00a0

"The cylinder was submerged in to a water tank in order to contain the leaking gas. Then we neutralised the poisonous gas by pouring four huge gunny bags of calcium hydroxide in the water tank. The gas was then directed to the cycling chamber and finally to the sewage treatment plant. The entire operation took around three hours."

"In order to capture the gas that leaked in the air, a blower was used to suck the gas. Despite the breathing apparatus, four fire brigade men were affected due to the leak and were administered first aid at the site itself," Gawde added.u00a0 According to the hospital authorities, total number of persons affected and reported to the OPD section were 56 out of which 26 were admitted.u00a0 Eleven of them were discharged against medical advice and one was found absconding.

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