Two dead, nine injured as fire causes cylinder blasts in Surat building

Surat: Two persons were killed and nine others sustained burn injuries after a fire in a building housing an embroidery unit in Gujarat's Surat city triggered gas cylinder blasts on Thursday, officials said.

The incident occurred at around 5:30 am, when two cylinders exploded following the fire on the third floor of the building located near Rachna circle in Kapodra locality, Bharatnagar, a fire department official said.

As many as eight gas cylinders were stored in the building, two of which exploded, causing fatalities, he said.

"As soon as the incident was reported, fire tenders from four fire stations were rushed to the spot. On arrival, the fire was found raging. Before the fire department vehicles reached, an LPG cylinder had exploded, causing the blaze to spread further,” the official said.

Firefighters broke a sheet covering the building's third floor, and the people trapped inside were rescued and sent to the hospital, he said.

"A total of 11 persons were pulled out. Nine of them suffered minor to moderate injuries, while two died," the official said.