NEW DELHI: The owner of a commercial godown in Delhi’s Okhla Phase-I was detained on Wednesday after an industrial oxygen cylinder explosion left one person dead and four others injured, police said.The cylinder exploded in the morning after it fell onto the road while being unloaded from a truck, officials said.Eyewitnesses said the blast was powerful enough to shatter glass windows of nearby buildings, news agency PTI reported.Five patients were admitted to the centre, of whom one died and four are undergoing treatment, an official said.The deceased was identified as Mohit Singh, 35, a helper working with a company operating from Okhla Phase-I. A resident of Jaitpur in Delhi, he had reportedly been working with the firm for around three years, police said.The injured have been identified as Umesh, Arvind, Manoj and Pankaj.They were rushed to the AIIMS Trauma Centre for treatment, PTI reported.Police registered an FIR under Section 106(1) of the BNS, pertaining to causing death by negligence, following which the owner was detained.A PCR call about the blast was received at 10.45am, following which police and fire department teams reached the spot and secured the area.Three water tenders and a multi-casualty first responder vehicle were also sent to the site.A preliminary police inquiry found that the labourers were working for a firm engaged in trading and local distribution of industrial oxygen cylinders meant for medical purposes and gas-cutting work.In a statement, the firm’s manager said the vehicle carrying the cylinders arrived at the premises in the morning as part of routine operations.The workers were unloading the cylinders and moving them inside the godown when one cylinder fell onto the road.“The exact technical cause of the blast has not yet been established. The scene, the cylinder, the vehicle and other relevant material will be examined by technical and forensic agencies to determine the precise cause of the explosion,” a police officer said.Badarpur sub divisional magistrate Yogesh Pal reached the spot after the blast and said multiple teams from the Delhi Fire Service, police and other agencies had been deployed, PTI reported.“We have identified the person who died and the process of identifying those four injured are underway,” Pal said.Pawan, who works at a nearby factory, said the explosion was extremely loud and initially felt like a bomb blast.“The blast was so intense that a ringing sound continued in our ears for some time,” he said.The cylinders are reportedly received in filled condition from Ghaziabad through a supplier identified as Ram Avtar and are subsequently supplied to local traders and industries, particularly in the Okhla area.Police are verifying details related to the ownership and agency of the cylinders, among other aspects.The spot has been secured and further investigation is underway.(With agency inputs)
