NEW DELHI: Three people were killed and three critically injured after a truck’s CNG cylinder exploded while it was being refilled at a gas station in Outer Delhi’s Tikri on Wednesday.All the dead were workers at the gas station located near Tikri Metro Station.
CNG station blast in Tikri
Police said the exact cause of the explosion was not immediately known and are examining the truck cylinder and gas station equipment.The blast, which happened around 3.20 pm, completely damaged the cylinder as well as the refuelling equipment at the station. Fire officials said a car and a scooter in the vicinity were also damaged in the blast.The dead were identified as Manish (25), Brahmjeet (34) and Sunny (30).Manish’s relative Vijay Prasad said Manish had been working at the gas station for three years and was from Bihar. He is survived by his wife, a five-month-old child and parents.‘Complaint about a leak in pipeline made 20 days ago’Manish’s friend Ashish Srivastava said it was a struggle to get the blast victims to hospital. Manish lay bleeding at the filling station for around 30 minutes as no ambulance was available, he said.He claimed the CNG station had given the employees two days off around 20 days ago to fix a complaint about a leak in the refuelling pipeline.There was no immediate response from the filling station operator on the allegation.Anil Chhikara, former deputy transport commissioner of Delhi, said CNG cylinders are not being tested every 3 years, and fake certification is being issued. In Delhi and NCR, CNG stations issue certificates without physically inspecting the vehicles. Further, Delhi govt does not oversee CNG testing stations, he said.Aditya, a relative of the deceased Brahmjeet, said that two of his uncles worked at the CNG filling station. One of them was killed in the blast, while the other sustained injuries. “Both were married and had children. They had been working at the station for the past two years,” he said.Sunny’s cousin Balraj Singh said Sunny had been working at the station for the past three to four years. Sunny’s elder brother had died in an accident, and he was supporting his brother’s children and family. He was the sole breadwinner of the family, Singh said.
