Thanjavur, July 30:
At least 10 people, including a 15-year-old girl, sustained severe burn injuries after an LPG cooking gas cylinder exploded on Thursday while locals were attempting to extinguish a house fire at Chinna Ammankudi in Thanjavur district, police said.
Seven of the injured are currently undergoing treatment in the ICU at the Thanjavur Medical College Hospital, they said.
The incident occurred around 2 am at the thatched residence of Murugayan, a local farmer from the Lakshmipuram area.
According to eyewitnesses, the fire broke out in the thatched structure at Chinna Ammankudi near Thiruvonam while the family was asleep. Neighbours noticed the flames, alerted the family to evacuate, and rushed to douse the blaze using water.
While several local men gathered around the structure to control the flames, an LPG cooking cylinder kept inside the thatched kitchen area unexpectedly exploded.
The impact of the blast injured Murugayan, his daughter Abhinaya, and several neighbours who were assisting in the firefighting efforts. They were identified as Kasinathan, Rajasekhar, Palanivel, Vembaiyan, Kalaiyarasi, Bhuvaneshwaran, Selvaraj and Kaliammal.
Recounting the incident, Durgadevi, a local resident, told PTI Videos that neighbours woke them up after seeing the thatched house on fire.
“We rushed our children outside to safety while the men brought water to put out the fire. No one knew a cylinder was inside, and it suddenly exploded,” she said, adding that some of the injured suffered over 80 per cent burn injuries.
Firefighters from Karambakudi arrived at the scene and rescued the victims. Three of the injured were admitted to the Pattukottai Government Hospital, while seven critically injured individuals were transferred via 108 ambulances to the Thanjavur Medical College Hospital, where they remain in intensive care.
The Thiruvonam police have registered a case and initiated an investigation into the accident.
Police personnel have been deployed to maintain security at the Thanjavur Medical College Hospital emergency department as large crowds of relatives gathered following the incident.