Boiler Blast at Gujarat’s Vadodra: 4 dead, 15 injured

By Shreya Jha On Dec 29, 2021

Boiler blast, Vadodra, photo source: Indian Express

A boiler exploded at a chemical factory in Gujarat’s Vadodara on Friday. The incident took four lives and injured 15 people at Canton Laboratory, located in the Makarpura GIDC [Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation] area of Vadodara city.

Explosion in Vadodra, photo source: India Today

The incident was reported, the fire brigade team rushed to control the damage at the spot. The main company of the factory had built a separate colony for the co-workers of the factory. The boiler exploded was close to the colony and the witnesses confirmed the intensity of the blast shook the nearby units. Window panes and damaged materials of the factory were shattered for over a kilometer. A train passed through a railway track which is also located near the factory. An eye witness, Najma Sheikh, who lives near the railway line, said, “It was a deafening blast. The blast occurred minute after a passenger train passed. Had the train been delayed, there could have been a massive tragedy. The residential buildings developed cracks.”

A teenager and a 30-year-old woman, who was the mother of the four-year girl, were the other victims. The injured have been taken to hospital.

4-Year-Old Girl Among 4 Dead In Boiler Blast, photo source: ANI

A massive blast ripped through the area in the morning and around 15 people were found injured. They were taken to nearby hospitals, and four of them were either declared dead or died during treatment, “local police official Sajid Baloch said.”

Makarpura GIDC fire station officer Nikunj Azad said that it appeared, prima facie, that an imbalance in temperature inside the boiler caused the blast. “The boiler could have overheated due to improper temperature maintenance. As of now, the electricity supply to the company has been snapped, “Azad said.

This is the second incident that took place in Gujarat. Another factory blast took place on December 16, 2021, resulting in seven deaths and several injuries in the Panchmahal district.