An oxygen cylinder kept to aid in the care of an ailing woman exploded in a house in Bulandshahr’s Sikandrabad area, killing her and five members of her family, including her husband and her three-year-old granddaughter.

The tragedy that snuffed out the lives of 45-year-old Rukhsana, who had recently been discharged from the hospital, her husband Riyazuddin, their three children and their granddaughter took place on Monday night. Their two-storey home, which housed 19 members of the family, collapsed partially due to the blast.

On Tuesday, when the bodies were brought back home after the post-mortem, each covered in a shroud, cries of anguish filled the air as hundreds of people gathered outside the family residence in Ashapuri Colony to share their condolences.

District Magistrate of Bulandshahr Chandra Prakash Singh said, "A cylinder blast occurred in the Ashapuri colony of Sikandrabad between 8.30 pm and 9 pm leading to the collapse of the entire house." Two or three others suffered injuries in the incident and the rest were safe, officials said.

Riyazuddin (50), his wife Rukhsana (45), their sons Aas Mohammed (26), Salman (16), daughter Tamannah (24) and her child Hibza (3) died due to the blast.

"She had asked me to take her back home after two days," Tamannah's husband Rizwan said. He spoke to her last around 5 pm, he said tearfully.

"Now, I'm left with the pain of losing my mother-in-law, father-in-law, brothers-in-law, wife and daughter all at once," Rizwan said.

Preparations for the last rites of the six deceased were underway on Tuesday afternoon.

Talking to PTI Videos, neighbours and first responders described the chaos that unfolded after the explosion.

Asif, who has lived next door for 18 years, said, "I heard a sound that felt like something had exploded. I ran outside and saw locals rushing to help. It was chaos, with people inside the house needing to be pulled out."

"The explosion created a red flash, followed by darkness in the house. We had to use our mobile phone torches to navigate the thick dust while trying to rescue anyone trapped inside," another neighbour said.

NDRF officer Neeraj Singh, who oversaw the on-ground rescue and relief operations, said the relief work by local police and administration had already started at the site by the time his force reached.

Surface victims had been moved to safety when the NDRF arrived. The NDRF's operations lasted about three hours, Neeraj Singh said.

"We used methods of canine search, technical search, physical search, etc. as per our procedures to make sure no live victim was left behind in the rubble until the civil authorities called off the operations," Singh told PTI Videos.

Personnel of the NDRF, fire brigade, police, medical and the local administration were involved in the rescue work, Additional Director General of Police, Meerut Zone, Dhruva Kant Thakur said.

DM Singh said the iron beams of the roof of the house had to be pried open using gas cutters. An excavator was also used to clear the debris, he said.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took immediate cognisance of the incident and directed officials to visit the spot and ensure good treatment to the injured, the DM said.

Senior Superintendent of Police of Bulandshahr Shlok Kumar told PTI that the rescue operation was completed on Tuesday morning. The cylinder, its nozzle, etc. have been recovered from the debris, he said.

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