Panic following blast in Unnao Hindustan Petroleum refilling plant

Shahira Naim
Tribune News Service
Lucknow, September 12

Panic spread in Unnao on Thursday morning when a gas tank at the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation refilling plant at the Dahi Chowki Industrial area caught fire after a huge explosion.

No casualties were reported. People present at the site have been evacuated. They said that in all probability a leakage in the valve of the tank caused the accident.

As a precautionary measure, an area in a radius of 2 km around the plant is being sealed off. Traffic on the Lucknow-Kanpur Highway is also being diverted.

Fire tenders reached the site soon after the blast and are trying to control the fire. A large number of police personnel are also present.

District magistrate Devendra Kumar Pandey, Superintendent of Police MP Verma and a team of fire officers are supervising the operation.

Workers in factories around the refilling plant and people living there are being moved to safer places, said the district magistrate.

Fire tenders have also been sent from Kanpur and Lucknow.