New Delhi: At least four workers were killed after a toxic gas leaked at the Gujarat Fluorochemicals Limited (GFL) CMS plant in Dahej of Gujarat’s Bharuch district on Saturday night. The incident was reported at around 10pm, when the gas began leaking from a pipe on the ground floor of the production unit.
According to inspector BM Patidar of Dahej Police Station, the workers inhaled the toxic fumes and fell unconscious. Despite being rushed to a private hospital in Bharuch, three of the workers succumbed to the fumes around 3am on Sunday, while the fourth passed away at 6am, a PTI report mentioned.
Three deceased outside of Gujarat
The deceased have been identified as Rajesh Kumar from Gujarat, Mudrika Yadav from Jharkhand, and Sushit Prasad and Mahesh Nandlal, both from Uttar Pradesh. Their bodies have been sent for post-mortem examinations. An investigation is underway to ascertain the cause of the gas leak.
GFL’s deputy general manager, Jignesh Parmar, expressed deep sorrow over the incident. “The company and management are saddened by this tragedy. We will fully cooperate with the legal authorities and conduct an internal investigation to determine the cause,” news agency PTI quoted him as saying. GFL has announced a compensation of Rs 25 lakh for the families of each deceased worker.
Amit Shah takes stock of the situation
Sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Manisha Manani confirmed that three of the victims hailed from other states and assured that a thorough inquiry into the incident would be conducted. “Four persons died due to gas leakage at the GFL plant near Ambeta village. The bodies have been sent to the civil hospital in Bharuch for post-mortem and an investigation is underway,” Manani said.
According to reports, Union home minister Amit Shah had a telephonic conversation with chief minister Bhupendra Patel regarding the accident.
