Chennai: 4 hurt in cylinder fire in T Nagar

Chennai: Four persons suffered burns following a cylinder fire reported in the kitchen facility of the textile showroom of a leading chain on Tuesday. Two of them were critically injured. 

The incident took place in the kitchen of Saravana Selvarathinam in T. Nagar while the staff members were involved in preparation of lunch for the firm’s employees at around 9.30 am.

The Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue services personnel who rushed to the scene removed all the LPG cylinders in the kitchen to avert the spreading of the fire. Before the TNFRS personnel arrived at the scene, the injured were rushed to the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital (KMCH).

They were identified as Moorthy (17), Kadhar (20), Iliyas Ahmed (19) and Ibrahim Ali (20). Moorthy and Kadhar who suffered 75 percent and 55 percent burns in the incident are battling for life.  Iliyas Ahmed suffered 25 percent burns while Ibrahim Ali suffered 5 percent burns and they are out of danger. Preliminary investigations revealed that the gas leak had accumulated in the kitchen overnight and triggered the blaze when an employee tried to light up a stove.

The loud noise from the blaze triggered panic among the commuters and shoppers, and a commotion ensued.  The place where the accident happened is the centralised kitchen of the facility and its ancillary units. The massive kitchen, which is located on Natesan Street, caters to about 1,500 people. The kitchen was subsequently closed and alternate arrangements were made by the management.

Following the incident, the cops rushed to the scene, and cordoned off the area. The statements of the injured were recorded by the cops while a metropolitan magistrate took the statement of Moorthy. A case had been registered by the City police.