One person was killed and six others sustained critical burn injuries after an explosion triggered a fire at an Oil India Limited (OIL) facility in Assam's Dibrugarh district on Friday, officials said.
The incident occurred around 9.05 am during maintenance operations at the Intermediate Tank Farm in Tengakhat, according to a statement issued by the public sector undertaking.
Preliminary information indicated that an accidental mishap during maintenance work led to the explosion and subsequent fire.
Nine workers were present at the site when the incident occurred. Seven sustained injuries, and one of them later succumbed, the company said.
The deceased was identified as Raju Dutta, an employee of Mumbai-based Spectron Engineers Private Limited, which had been engaged by Oil India for the maintenance work.
The six other injured workers, also employed by the contractor, were admitted to Assam Medical College and Hospital (AMCH) in Dibrugarh.
๐ฆ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป
AMCH superintendent Dhrubajyoti Bhuyan said the six injured workers were in critical condition, having suffered burns ranging from 35 to 90 per cent.
"Their condition is being monitored constantly," Bhuyan told PTI.
Hospital authorities continued providing treatment to the injured, while the district administration assured assistance with medical care and transportation arrangements wherever required.
An Intermediate Tank Farm is used for temporarily storing petroleum products before they are transferred for further processing or transportation.
๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต๐ ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐น
Oil India said its firefighting personnel were immediately mobilised after the incident. The company's fire service teams launched an operation to contain the flames and prevent the blaze from spreading to adjoining installations.
The fire was extinguished by 12.30 pm, with 11 fire tenders deployed at the facility. Officials said the situation was subsequently brought under control.
Dibrugarh District Commissioner Bikram Kairi, Senior Superintendent of Police Gaurav Abhijit Dilip and other senior officials visited the site to assess the damage and oversee emergency measures.
Kairi said personnel from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), along with firefighting teams, had reached the facility and initiated the necessary response.
He confirmed that there was no active fire and appealed to residents of nearby areas not to panic. The administration said evacuation was not required as the situation was under control.
๐๐ป๐พ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ผ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฏ๐น๐ฎ๐๐ฒ
The district administration said it would investigate the circumstances leading to the incident and coordinate with Oil India to ensure appropriate safety measures.
Oil India has also constituted an internal inquiry committee to identify the immediate and underlying causes of the fire, assess the damage and recommend measures to prevent similar incidents.
The company expressed condolences to the bereaved family, while officials said the immediate priority remained the treatment and recovery of the injured workers.
The exact cause of the explosion has yet to be established.