A gas leak from a cylinder pipe triggered a flare-up at Hostel No. 6 on the IIT Bombay campus in Powai on Thursday night, injuring five people, including two minors, while a separate fire at a construction workers’ labour camp in Mulund East led to the explosion of seven gas cylinders, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation said.
The IIT Bombay incident was reported by Rajawadi Hospital at around 10.24pm. Following the report, police and BMC ward staff were mobilised to the campus. Four of the injured were shifted to Kasturba Hospital, while one was admitted to Rajawadi Hospital. The BMC said all five were in stable condition.
The injured were identified as Ansh Ahirwar, 12, and Tahjib Aalam, 9, who were taken to Kasturba Hospital; Ishwar Singh, 37, who was admitted to Rajawadi Hospital; and Shivkumar Singh, 34, and Anilkumar Yadav, 23, who were also shifted to Kasturba Hospital. The supplied report did not specify the extent of their injuries or whether the hostel building sustained damage.
The second incident occurred at a G+1 labour camp in Navghar, Mulund East. The camp had been set up for construction workers under the BMC’s Project Affected Persons project. According to preliminary information, a fire is suspected to have started as a small blaze before triggering the explosions of seven gas cylinders.
All occupants of the Mulund premises were safely evacuated, and no casualties were reported in that incident. Fire brigade personnel were at the site, with firefighting operations underway when the report was filed.
The two incidents brought emergency services to separate parts of Mumbai on the same night. In Powai, the response followed information from a hospital, with police and municipal ward staff reaching the IIT Bombay campus. In Mulund East, firefighters were deployed after the labour camp fire and subsequent cylinder explosions.
The BMC said further details of both incidents were being ascertained and that investigations were underway. The available information does not establish whether the two incidents were connected. Further findings from the investigations and fire brigade operations are awaited.
