Police: Lighting of stove by a tea vendor reason for GAIL pipeline fire

Mumbai: A massive explosion Friday on a state-owned gas pipeline running through Andhra Pradesh killed at least 16 people and gutted scores of homes, a state minister said. Television pictures showed flames at least 10 metres (30 feet) high leaping into the dawn sky, scorching trees in a surrounding coconut grove in the coastal area where many live in flimsy huts.

Also read: Andhra pipeline explosion: Fire under control, state government orders probe; 16 feared dead

According to Andhra Pradesh Police the lighting of stove by a tea vendor might have been the reason to cause fire in the Gail pipeline after the gas leaked from the line surrounding the area. The leakage of the gas pipeline occurred somewhere around 4:30 am at the Nagharam Village which eventually spread and got horrific when the stove was lit at a tea shop nearby as told by IGP North Coastal Zone Atu Singh.

However, he further shared that only after a detailed inquiry the exact cause of the incident will be known. The impact of the blast was such that a crater was created on the ground. Sources said that the gas spread up to a radius of nearly 200 meters. The gas leak damaged nearby areas and charred nearby houses and trees.

Panic-stricken villagers of Nagaram village fled away as soon as the incident took place. GAIL is the country's largest state-owned natural gas processing and distribution company and its website shows it has a pipeline that transports liquefied natural gas in the area of the explosion.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he had asked the petroleum minister and other senior officers to ensure immediate relief at the accident site.