Bharuch, Jun 3 (PTI) At least 40 workers of a chemical factory were injured on Wednesday and five were killed due to a huge fire caused by a blast at a pesticide factory at Dahej in Bharuch district of Gujarat.
"Around 35-40 workers sustained burn injuries after the boiler of an agro-chemical company exploded in afternoon. All the injured persons have been shifted to hospitals in Bharuch, and efforts are on to control the fire," Bharuch collector M.D. Modia told PTI.
The fire has engulfed the entire unit, the collector said.
He said residents of Lakhi and Luvara villages located near the factory are being evacuated as a precautionary measure because of the presence of plants of poisonous chemicals near the affected factory.
A report in The Times of India mentions that at least five people have been killed and 32 injured due to the explosion at pesticide company Yashasvi Rasayan Pvt. Ltd. at noon. The report mentioned that the fire was set off at the storage facility of the company and that the resultant explosion was so loud that it was heard about 20 kilometres away.
“Due to the fire, the tanks storing hydrogen, sulphur dioxide, xylene and ethanol are at risk,” an official from the Gujarat Pollution Control Board told the newspaper.