Police and hospital sources believe that the casualty figures may go up as 20 of those injured are in a critical state.
As many as six people were burnt to death and 25 seriously injured, after a fire broke out in the storage department of the Dudhsagar Dairy in Mehsana. Police and hospital sources believe that the casualty figures may go up as 20 of those injured are in a critical state.
Five bodies were taken out from below the rubble of the collapsed storage walls. All injured were rushed to the nearby Lions Hospital. Three of them with around 90% burn injuries were later in the evening shifted to Apollo Hospital at Bhat, Gandhinagar.
The fire, which broke out at around 1.45pm was believed to be the result of a gas pipeline leakage. It took three and a half hours for around 24 fire brigade officials to bring the flames under control.
The blast was so strong that it broke the walls of the storage department and a boiler too, was allegedly broken by the sheer impact of the same. "Five people died on the spot, while one died at the Lions Hospital. We are trying to identify the dead bodies," SJ Desai, police sub inspector, Mehsana 'B' division told DNA on phone.
Desai said that the bodies were too charred to be identified. According to victims' statements, recorded by Desai, more bodies are trapped inside the building and the different teams of fire brigade are carrying out rescue operation to find the same.
The rescue teams faced several problems while trying to contain the fire. A fire officer told DNA that the flames were so strong that they could not go anywhere close to the storage wall.
Different fire brigade teams from nearby area were also deployed to control the fire.
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