Four schoolchildren were charred to death when their van caught fire on Monday at Jogeshwari (west).
MUMBAI: Four schoolchildren were charred to death when their van caught fire on Monday at Jogeshwari (west).
The driver of the Maruti omni noticed flames as soon as he turned the key in the ignition and jumped out to pull out the eight kids sitting in the back seat as they were closer to the liquified petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder that powered the vehicle. By the time he and bystanders moved them to safety, Hadiqua, Madiha and Zuber Rafiz, all aged six – who were seated in the front – were burnt alive. Another child died at Cooper hospital.
The gas could have leaked through the pipes, taking it through to the engine as the cylinder was not damaged.
Police said Jabbar Qureshi had bought the van second hand a few months back and converted it to run on LPG. He had the RTO clearances for the conversion but not the permission to use the vehicle as a public carrier. Qureshi was arrested by the Oshiwara police.
Principal of the Millat School, which is run by the Jogeshwari Education Trust, said the school itself operated more than 20 buses for its students. But economic considerations as well as a quicker ride home prompted many parents to opt for alternative transport, placing the kids at risk.
Professor S Ganeshan who teaches at the IIT said an explosion in a vehicle using LPG as fuel could be due to a leak anywhere in the delivery system from the cylinder to the engine block. There is no need for an explosion of the cylinder per se. The cylinder could remain intact.
LPG is a mixture of propane and butane and the lower explosion limit in the air is about 2% and the upper explosion limit is about 10% by volume. This means that a 2% concentration in the air will sustain a fire or explosion, he said. LPG is extremely hazardous and even a small pinhole leak can lead to an accumulation of gas in a confined area as it will not dissipate or evaporate easily being heavier than air.
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