New Delhi: Two persons lost their lives while nine others were injured when a major fire that broke out in a godown in Sanjay Gandhi Transport Nagar on Tuesday.
Officials of the fire department said they received a call about the incident around 4.20 pm and immediately 15 fire tenders were rushed to the spot at Samaypur Badli.
Jagdish Jain, chairman of the transport association in the area said, "I gave a call to police and fire brigade when the blast occurred. It was huge. The driver who got down to unload the cartons from the vehicle bore the brunt of the blast. He was immediately killed along with one more man."
"At least nine persons were injured in the blast and the nearby godowns, which caught fire immediately," Jain added.
Local residents said that 15 fire tenders were seen at the spot within minutes of the fire bein reported.
Sources said the godown where the fire broke out contained paint retarder and the blast reportedly occurred in the mini-truck when the driver was unloading the material.
Cops said the driver has been identified as 51-year-old Kuldeep Singh, while the other deceased is 45-year-old Bal Kishan, a labourer.
The nine injured persons have been identified as Fitrat, Samunder, Satbeer, Rakesh, Vinod, Yashpal, Bittu, Pannalal and Heeralal.
Police personnel were at the spot had to struggle to keep the public at bay. However, it was the local people who responded first and helped carry the victims to the hospital.
The impact of the blast was so powerful that Kuldeep Songh's body parts were scattered all over the place. The godown received substantial damage as well.
"We are verifying if the godown was violating any security norms. The godown was for storing miscellaneous goods used by transporters. The fire took place while the thinner material was being unloaded," said Deputy Commisioner of Police (Rohini), Rajnish Gupta.
Preliminary investigation suggests the blast was caused due to a leakage or defect from the truck's CNG kit.
Meanwhile, the forensic lab has collected samples from the spot and the district administration sealed the building deeming it unsafe after the fire. Those injured who suffered serious burn injuries were sent to Safdarjung Hospital, while those who received minor injuries were sent to Ambedkar Hospital.