Steam boiler explodes at Kalmeshwar MIDC factory near Nagpur, three workers hurt

A steam boiler exploded at the Kalmeshwar MIDC industrial area in Nagpur district on Saturday night. The boiler at the Chemfield company burst at around 9.30 pm.

Three workers suffered minor injuries. It was said that a major accident was luckily averted. The injured include Neeraj Yadav, Ravi Nishad and June Bandsingh, an 18-year-old worker. All three were first admitted to a private hospital, and after primary treatment they were sent home the same night.

The blast was so powerful that part of the company's wall collapsed. A preliminary guess has been put forward that a sudden fluctuation in temperature caused it. This is only a preliminary assumption, and the final and exact cause of the explosion has not yet emerged.

Kalmeshwar police reached the spot as soon as they were informed, inspected the site and began an investigation to establish the exact cause. Fear spread in the area for some time after the incident.

Separately, a major fire broke out at a plastic warehouse in the Vardhaman Nagar area of Nagpur at around 6 am. A large quantity of plastic material was reduced to ashes. Four fire brigade vehicles reached the spot and the fire was fought with their help. The blaze is now under control, but what caused it is still not clear.

In Nagpur's Lakadganj small-industries area, a fire in a warehouse of plastic sacking on Sunday morning caused alarm in the neighbourhood. The warehouse held large stocks of plastic raw material and finished goods. As plastic is highly flammable, the fire turned fierce within a short time. Thick black smoke poured out of the warehouse and billowed across the area. Firefighters began efforts on a war footing to bring the fire under control.