Mandya: A cylinder explosion at a tea shop in Ashoka Nagar here in the early hours of Saturday caused extensive damage to the premises and an adjoining tiles shop.The incident occurred around 4.45am, triggering panic among the locals.According to preliminary information, the LPG cylinder had allegedly not been switched off after the shop was closed the previous night. Gas is suspected to have leaked and accumulated inside the premises, resulting in an explosion in the early hours of Saturday. The impact of the blast triggered a fire, which spread to the adjacent shop too.Local residents alerted the fire and emergency services department, following which firefighters rushed to the spot and brought the flames under control.The fire destroyed three freezers, a double-store freezer, 15 tables, 15 chairs, fans, gas and cooking equipment, a UPS unit and computers, besides other articles in the shop. The total property loss has been estimated at around Rs 20 lakh.No casualties were reported in the incident.
