Passer-by among two killed in boiler blast

Factory worker suffered 70% burns in accident

LAHORE:

Two men were killed after a boiler explosion rocked a factory on Multan Road on Thursday.

Police said reportedly a boiler of a soft drink manufacturing factory had exploded with a huge blast in Awan Town. The blast was so powerful that it was heard at a long distance and it broke down the windowpanes of the nearby buildings.

A report submitted before the Lahore commissioner revealed that a passer-by Yaseen was travelling on a motorcycle when the blast took place. He lost control of his two-wheeler due to the thud of the blast and rammed into a tractor-trolley. He died on the spot.

A worker identified as Shabbir Hussain, 50 had suffered 70% burn injuries in the blast and later succumbed to hi his wounds. On information of the incident, teams of Rescue 1122 reached the spot and launched the rescue operation. They shifted the injured to Lahore Jinnah Hospital and extinguished the fire.

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Deaths in factory fires are reported frequently in Punjab due to a lack of safety measures.

In January, at least three labourers were burnt alive in an incident of fire in a furnace oil factory in the Rana Town area of District Sheikhupura.

The fire reportedly broke out because of an explosion in a boiler, and all of a sudden it turned into a huge one.

A rescue officer shared with The Express Tribune that a caller intimated the service about the fire and said that two or three persons of the staff were missing.

The area is around 10 kilometres away from Shahdara, Lahore and some 50km from Sheikhupura city. The rescue teams were dispatched from Lahore and Sheikhupura.

At least 30 rescuers and 10 rescue vehicles participated in the rescue operation which was led by District Emergency Officer Sheikhupura (DEO) Rana Ejaz. The rescuers strived first to evacuate the victims and bodies after they reached the site, the official said.

They launched the search operation and evacuated three bodies. The bodies were shifted to a morgue. Due to the fire, a portion of the factory building collapsed. It was feared that the victims might get trapped under the debris.

The rescue official said it was a tedious job to control the fire as highly combustible material and furnace oil were present inside the factory in huge quantities. The fire was extinguished after a hectic firefighting operation for about four hours.

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However, even after the site was declared clear, some rescue teams remained busy in the cooling process.

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar has sought a report from the Lahore commissioner and secretary labour about an incident of fire at the Multan Road factory.

He directed them to identify the reasons for fire adding that action be initiated against those responsible for the negligence. The CM also condoled the death of a labourer and extended sympathies to the heirs.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 22^nd, 2021.