A boiler blast at the Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) plant on Wednesday, December 27 in Chennai, has resulted in the death of a worker and at least four other workers sustaining serious injuries. After the blast at the plant situated in Tondiarpet, workers were seen rushing out of the facility in panic as billows of smoke rose into the air. According to Puthiathalaimurai, a loop line carrying ethanol caught fire and exploded, killing one worker, identified as Perumal, on the spot. Perumal was reportedly working as a welder.
The Indian Express earlier reported that five fire tenders arrived at the spot, but the flames had already been extinguished by IOCL. The cause of the fire on the loop line has not been established yet.
The tragic incident occurred mere hours after another industrial accident in Ennore, where ammonia gas leaked from the Coromandel International Limited fertiliser manufacturing facility owned by the Murugappa Group. The gas leak led to thousands of residents fleeing their homes and resulted in 42 persons being hospitalised with a host of medical conditions, including bleeding from the ears and nose.