Five people died and nearly 30 others were injured in an explosion in the production and packaging unit of the flip -flops near the village in Lambi in the district of Sri Muktsar Sahib in Panjab, the police said on Friday.
“The explosion took place in the two-storey factory unit, located on the Singhewala-Kotli road in Sri Muktsar Sahib on the border of Pandjab-Haryany,” said Lambi’s representative of the police director (DSP), Jaspal Singh, adding by phone.
The police said the incident occurred around 1:00.
The injuries were transported to hospitals, including Aiims Bathinda, and most of them were listed as a danger, DSP said, adding that the cause behind the explosion is subject to investigation.
Police manager, Sri Muktsar Sahib Akhil Chaudhary told PTI that the explosion occurred in one of the rooms in the unit’s production settings, led to the collapse of the roof and other parts of the building.
Many of them were imprisoned under the debris and the rescue operations started as soon as the police received information about the incident, SSP said.
The explosion seems to have been caused by materials used in the production of flip flops, although the exact cause can be found after investigation and forensic tests, SSP said by phone.
DSP Jaspal said that 40-50 workers, including many of those who slept on the area, were present in the unit at the time of the incident.
When asked whether the flip -flops manufacturing unit had the necessary authorities required for operation, SSP stated that the records in this respect were verified by the ministry concerned.
(Tagstotranslate) pandjab News
