Blast At Steel Plant In Southern India Kills 11, Injures 16

Blast at steel plant in southern India kills 11, injures 16 < br />

2012-06-15 06:10:24 GMT+7 (ICT)

NEW DELHI, INDIA (BNO NEWS) -- At least eleven people were killed on late Wednesday evening when a blast ripped through a steel plant in southern India, local authorities said on Thursday. More than a dozen people were injured, many of them critically.

The explosion took place at the oxygen plant in the steel melting shop II unit of the Viskhapatnam Steel Plant in India's Andhra Pradesh State while officials were conducting a trial run of the recently commissioned oxygen plant.

Police said about 30 workers were at the plant at the time of the accident, killing eleven of them and injuring at least sixteen others. Among those injured was general manager V Kalsi, who suffered severe burns on 98 percent of his body which have left him in a critical condition. Nine others also suffered burns on more than 90 percent of their bodies.

There was no immediate word from authorities on what may have caused the explosion, but Indian media reported that it may have occurred when pressure increased in the oxygen plant's pipeline. Trade union leaders have claimed maintenance work had not been carried out for more than a year.

Over the last 1.5 year, at least five fires have hit the plant, which has been expanding over the past four years to double its current capacity which makes it one of India's largest steel producers. Two workers were killed at the plant in May when a blast hit a newly-commissioned furnace.

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