Secunderabad: Blast at chemical factory, 1 hurt while running out

SECUNDERABAD: A chemical reactor exploded at a chemical factory in Industrial Development Area, Nacharam on Thursday night. Six workers who were in the factory at the time of the accident managed to run to safety, but one was injured after he fell from a staircase while running out.
A reactor in the chemical factory, DSN Labs, is suspected to have exploded due to overheating and also damaged another reactor kept next to it.“Due to the impact of the explosion, the windows of a nearby factory broke. The tin shed of the G+1 storey chemical factory was also affected," said station fire officer Mallesh. The incident occurred on Thursday around 11.50 pm.
Two fire tenders worked for over an hour to douse the fire completely. “We were fighting the fire from a distance as we were not sure if another reactor would explode,” added the officer. According to a source, the property damage is estimated to be around Rs 9 lakh.
It was not the first explosion in the area this year. A resident of IDA Nacharam tweeted to minister KT Rama Rao, about the incident on social media asking to remove the factories from residential areas. “It was another terrible blast at Nacharam Industrial area just now. Major fire accident. Fire engines are on job. Feeling insecure to live Raheja Vistas. Please help us and remove the factories from here,” Shiva Shankar tweeted and shared pictures of the explosion.
“We felt the vibration as the factory is close to our building. In July, another explosion took place at GVK Biosciences Pvt Ltd. The chemical factory is also very close to our building. Such incidents are scary,” said Shiva, owner of a software company.
To his tweet KTR replied saying, “We are seriously concerned about the polluting (Red/Orange) industries & adjoining residential neighbourhoods. We will make sure to move these industries outside ORR in a phased manner.”
According to residents, the factories discharge smoke creating air pollution in the area. “We stay here with families. Most days a pungent odour emanates from the factories and we have to keep all doors and windows closed. I have a 40-day-old baby boy. He woke up to the sound of explosion on Thursday night. We were relieved after KTR tweeted that the industries will soon be shifted outside of ORR,” he added.