Three people were injured in an explosion in a gas pipeline in Tata Steel plant in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand on Saturday, a company official said.
The blast occurred around 10.20am, and the injured employees were admitted to Tata Main Hospital, the statement said.
“We wish to inform you that today, at around 10.20am, there was a blasting sound at battery 6 of the coke plant at Jamshedpur Works. Currently, battery 6 is non-operational and is undergoing a dismantling process,” a statement issued by Tata Steel stated.
Fire and smoke billows from the Tata Steel works. Bhola Prasad
“Our emergency response team immediately reached the incident site and the situation was brought under control quickly. Three contract employees sustained minor injuries and were administered first aid. While two of them have been discharged post first aid, one is currently under medical observation. There has been no impact on production,” the statement read.
“Investigation to assess the cause is underway,” said sources.
The explosion caused panic among the employees who started running helter-skelter. One staffer sustained minor injuries after falling down on the ground in the melee. Sources said that five fire tenders of the Tata Steel rushed to the spot to douse the flames.
The Tata Steel works in Jamshedpur on Saturday. Bhola Prasad
Earlier on January 18, 2021, a minor explosion with fire spatters took place at the hot metal pooling pit near Slag Road gate of the leading steel manufacturer Tata Steel’s Jamshedpur works leading to injuries to two workers.
In November 2013, at least 10 workers were injured and one died during treatment following an explosion inside the Tata Steel plant here. The explosion was caused in the LD gas holder, which led to a fire in the adjoining gas pipeline.
The Tata Steel works. Bhola Prasad
At present, Tata Steel’s consolidated India crude steel production capacity stands at 19.6 MT per annum with manufacturing facilities in Jamshedpur in Jharkhand, Kalinganagar and Dhenkanal in Odisha, Sahibabad in Uttar Pradesh and Khopoli in Maharashtra.
Tata Steel tweeted at around 6.57 pm in reaction to videos and pictures on fire mishap at its being circulated in social media.
The tweet said: “We’ve taken cognisance of media reports/social media posts featuring videos with fire imagery and being projected as a massive fire/explosion. We wish to clarify that it’s a normal aspect of coke oven operations where flare stacks are lighted up during breakdowns or emergencies.”
