4 kids among 8 dead in LPG cylinder explosion in Gonda

Police said the three of the deceased were the children of Nurul Hasan (60), the owner of the house. They were identified as Nisar Ahmad (35), Rubina Bano (32), Shamshad Ahmad (28). The other victims were Nisar’s wife Sayeroon Nisha (35), daughter Noori Shaba (12) and son Shahbaz (14). The deceased minors were identified as Meraj (11) and Mohammad Shoaib (2).

“We were informed around 10.30 pm on Tuesday that an LPG cylinder had exploded at a house in Tikri village, which comes within the ambit of Wazirganj police station. We conducted a swift rescue operation and rushed the injured to a hospital in the district. A total of eight people died in the incident,” Gonda SP Santosh Kumar Mishra said.

He added that the owner of the house told them that he was sleeping when the cooking gas cylinder blew up. “We have deployed two teams at the spot to investigate the cause and the nature of the blast. Our forensic team and bomb disposal squad are collecting samples from the scene. While the house where the incident took place completely collapsed, the neighbouring one suffered partial damage. We will question the injured survivors once they are able to talk to us and also when the victims have been buried,” he added.

An officer said the majority of the deceased were related to the survivors and some of them were asleep when the explosion took place. “During the rescue, the dead bodies as well as the injured persons had to be pulled out with the help of three earthmovers as they were buried deep inside the rubble that their house had been reduced to,” the officer said.

Police said the seven injured are being treated separately at the Gonda district hospital and a private hospital in the district.