7 injured in LPG cylinder blast at Patna house

Patna: Seven persons, including three children, were injured in an LPG cylinder blast at a house in Patna on Monday, police said.

The incident happened around 8 am in Salimpur Ahra in Gandhi Maidan police station area, they said.

"It was a case of gas leak blast. Both Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) teams have confirmed that the blast took place due to gas leakage," D Amarkesh, City Superintendent of Police (Central), told PTI.

Of the seven injured persons, six belonged to the same family, he said, adding that they have been admitted to the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH).

Those injured have been identified as Baidyanath Mahto (35), Gangajali Devi (50), Manish Kumari (10), Mahi (07), Ansh (07), Rekha Devi (30) and Tarkeshwar Pandey (52), said Vimal Karak, superintendent of the PMCH.

Conditions of Gangajali and Manish are stated to be serious, hospital sources said.

Locals claimed that it was not a cylinder blast but a bomb explosion as two adjoining buildings were damaged due to its severe intensity.

The blast was also heard a few hundred meters away, they said.

Patna Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Upendra Sharma said that had it been a bomb blast, the victims would have received splinter injuries and cut marks.