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VARANASI: Residents of Walidpur town in Mau district of Uttar Pradesh said they would never forget the horrible memories of the cylinder blast which killed 13 people and injured 18 others on Monday.
Pappu Kumar, a general store owner, said that he never heard as deafening a sound as the one on Monday morning when the cylinder blast in a kitchen brought down one house and damaged two others in Bichalpur colony of the town.
The cylinder blast sent a shiver down his spine, he said. Locals sipping tea at a stall nearby said they were shocked too and ran towards Chhotu Vishwakarma’s house where the explosion took place.
“It was a very scary morning. The blast destroyed the two-story house of Chhotu Vishwakarma and killed 13 people of our village. A few of them were my friends. The incident has left deep scars on my mind. I will never be able to forget the sound that shook the neighbourhood,” Kumar said.
Reena Vishwakarma, who visited the spot soon after the house caught fire just before the blast, suffered injuries.
“The scene was very frightening. Everything happened quickly Before I could sense anything, the house collapsed and I was under debris. I suffered injuries,” she said.
Riyaz, who lived in the vicinity, suffered injuries after the debris of a wall fell on him.
“I don’t want to recall that horrible moment,” he said, adding that the incident left whole village in trauma.
Another local, who was present on the spot, said there was panic all around after the cylinder blast and five people, who rushed to the house where the leakage from the cylinder caused a fire, died in the blast triggered by the blaze. These five were among the 13 who died in the incident.
› Everything happened quickly Before I could sense anything, the house collapsed and I was under debris REENA VISHWAKARMA, wtiness