Shiv Kumar
Tribune News Service
Mumbai, August 8
More than 40 employees of the public sector Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd were injured after a fire broke out at its refinery at Mahaul in Mumbai’s Chembur area, police and fire officials said.
Six of them were taken to Sushrut Hospital nearby for treatment.
The fire, classified as Level 3, was first reported at around 2.45 this afternoon, Mumbai’s Chief Fire Officer P S Rahangdale said.
The company said in a statement this evening that the fire broke out at the hydro cracker plant in the refinery.
The heat by the fire caused pressure to build up resulting in an explosion, according to the company.
Fire officials said they were pumping water into the plant from a safe distance.
Since residential buildings surround the plant, the authorities evacuated people around the premises as a precautionary measure.
By late afternoon, fire officials said the fire had been put out and cooling operations were being carried out.
Residents told media outlets that they first heard a loud blast which caused windows to vibrate in several buildings.
According to BPCL, the hydro cracker plant was being revamped as part of the project to upgrade the refinery.
Crude oil was refined here and the modernisation project aimed to produce cleaner fuels.
BPCL officials said the cause of the fire was yet to be ascertained.
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