23 hurt in blaze after leak in cylinder in south Delhi slum
SRINIVASPURI An unidentified source triggered the fire when the leaking cylinder tipped over and fell
NEWDELHI: Nearly two dozen persons were injured in a blaze caused by leakage in a cooking gas cylinder in a slum in south Delhi’s Srinivaspuri on Sunday evening, police said.
The accident occurred in a narrow bylane of Indira Camp-2 where the cylinder was brought out by its owner upon detecting a leakage. As one man — surrounded by curious onlookers — tried to plug the leak, an unidentified source ignited the flammable gas that was rapidly leaking, said eyewitnesses. Though the cylinder did not blast, eyewitnesses said the impact was similar to a blast as people flung several feet away. The accident triggered a mini stampede as victims ran to douse the flames on their bodies.
The fire department provided a list of 23 persons, including 10 women, who received burns ranging from 1% to 55%. Four of them suffered serious injuries and were admitted in Safdarjung Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit till late Monday. Residents, however, pegged the casualty figure at 29 and claimed that five persons chose private treatment.
Uma Devi, an eyewitness, said the cylinder is owned by the family of Kishan Kumar, a 45-yearold autorickshaw driver. “Kishan had started using the new cylinder only a day earlier. His wife was about to light the stove around 7pm on Sunday when she smelled gas. Kishan rushed out of their home with the cylinder from the narrow exit,” said Devi.
Kumar sought help to plug the leak from Surender, a local shopkeeper, said Devi, adding, “Surender was trying to fix the knob with his hands when the cylinder tipped over and fell, causing the gas to rapidly spew in one direction in the lane. Suddenly the gas caught fire and the flames engulfed a 30-metre stretch in that direction,” said Devi, who was on the other side of that lane.
No houses were gutted, however, some curtains and overhead wires were burnt. When the gas caught fire, “people were propelled like rockets. One man flew like a football. Two women who were had wet jute sacks ready to avert any accident by the leaking cylinder were thrown several feet away,” said Sudesh Chaudhary, another eyewitness. The two women, Sadhna and Keshanta, each received 25% burns, mainly to their heads, faces and limbs. The other two persons seriously injured were Kishan and his wife, Leelawati. They received 25% and 55% burns, respectively.
Amid all this action, Surender, decided to run with the cylinder towards the lane’s exit to prevent more casualties. “He could carry the cylinder only a few metres before his own burns forced him to drop it,” said Chaudhary. Surender was at the other end of the nozzle so he got 5% burns.
“I saw people rolling on the floor to douse the flames on their bodies. Some tried to take off their clothes, but it stuck to their skin,” said Radhe Shyam, an eyewitness. Chinmoy Biswal, DCP (south-east), said, “A case of negligent conduct with respect to fire against unknown persons has been registered at Amar Colony police station.”