Three workers died after inhaling a gas that leaked in Venkata Narayana Active Ingredients Private Limited, a chemical unit for medical drug manufacturing in Andhra's Nellore district. The incident reportedly took place in the early hours of Tuesday, May 11.
The manufacturing company is based in Chandrapadia village of Vinjamur mandal in Nellore district. The deceased have been identified as P Srinu from Vinjamur, Tirupataiah from Chouta Bheemavaram and one other person, who wasn't named.
A fourth person who was caught in the gas leak, identified as SK Sharif, is critical and undergoing treatment in a government hospital.
Speaking to TNM, Vinjamur Sub Inspector (SI) of Police, Bhagya Reddy said that they are yet to conclude what exactly the gas was that leaked at the unit. He said, "Company staff is saying that it was the vapours of hydrochloric or some other chemical released at the reactor, the officials from the department of factories have come and they will conclude what could have happened."
He added, "Due to the intensity of the leak we are yet to go inside the premises, but we are at the scene." He also said that there were no other casualties.
A case has been registered and a probe is underway as per the police officer. According to the SI, the company was functioning at the time of the incident.
Earlier, in July 2020, a boiler explosion in the same factory killed an employee and left three others severely injured, as they were trying to load chemicals.
A year ago, on May 7, 2020, a gas leakage at LG Polymers Private Limited, a chemical plant in Visakhapatnam, left a dozen people dead and hundreds affected as a poisonous gas, identified as styrene, leaked.