Death toll reaches 17…
On Wednesday, a major fire and explosion ripped through a pharma unit leaving 17 people dead and more than 30 injured in the incident.
The damage could have been more but due to lunchtime, few workers were there in the plant when the accident occurred.
The scenes shed with injured workers, their skin ripped and peeling off, bodies soaked in blood.
They have been shifted to hospital in ambulances after the incident occurred at 2:15 pm at Escientia Advanced Science Pvt Ltd.
Anakapalli district collector Vijaya Krishnan said the fire was suspected to be electricity-related issues.
On Thursday, 22 August 2024, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who will visit the site, ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident, promising stringent action against the management if its negligence was found to have caused the tragic incident.
The company, which manufactures intermediate chemicals and active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) commenced production in April 2019 with an investment of Rs 200 crore.
It is located on a 40-acre campus in the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation's (APIIC) multi-product SEZ at the Atchutapuram cluster.
The collector told news agency PTI that the factory operates with 381 employees in two shifts. "The fire occurred during the daytime. Therefore, staff presence was less," she said.
Nearly 30 injured were shifted to different hospitals in Anakapalli and Atchutapuram.
Further, 13 people trapped in the unit were rescued using ladder vehicles, officials said.
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