The intensity of the blast was such that the glass panes of French windows of almost all the buildings within 3km of the plant were shattered.
After acid rains last year, residents of MIDC in Dombivli were shaken to the core on Thursday morning after a blast took place in a chemical plant in the area. The intensity of the blast was such that the glass panes of French windows of almost all the buildings within 3km of the plant were shattered.
Chaya Pagare (40), who babysits three tiny tots, is scared to return to her fourth-floor residence at Jayshree Nivas, Dombivli, MIDC. "I was downstairs when around 11.30am I heard a huge blast. I thought there was an earthquake since all the buildings in our area started shaking and the window panes broke," she said.
Her daughter Richa (23) was at home with three two-year-old children, looking after them till Pagare returned. "I thought that it was maybe an earthquake or a terror attack," Richa said, adding that she rushed downstairs with the kids after the blast, helped by her neighbours.
Even Smriti Mishra from Balaji Darshan had to rush downstairs with her half-bathed, half-naked four-year-old granddaughter when the front door of her third-floor apartment came off due to the blast. "I was on the phone in the kitchen while my granddaughter Shreya was bathing. Her parents were in the bedroom," Mishra said. "Suddenly, there was a loud bang and our door fell in while the window panes broke. I wrapped Shreya in a towel, scooped her in my arms and all of us ran downstairs," she added.
Similarly, Amit Yande from Balaji Darshan woke up with glass pieces stuck to his back. "I normally wake up at 1pm to leave for my 3pm shift at work. Today, around 11.30am, our building started shaking and my French windows shattered, with the shards falling on my back," Yande said.
The incident has shaken up the residents to the extent that they are now questioning their safety. "I had shifted to this flat just two months ago. I am now wondering whether I should stay here or not as this place is unsafe with all these chemical factories around," Yande said.
"These chemical companies are hardly 100m away from our buildings," said Amit Vengurlekar, who sustained minor scratches after his window pane broke and bruised his left hand and knee. "The distance is not enough for it to be safe and this dangerous proximity could prove fatal for us in the future," he added.
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