An explosion — suspected to be an LPG cylinder blast — inside a small fast-food stall in a congested Kestopur area left 15 persons injured on Thursday afternoon.
Police said some of the men, who were closest to the site of the explosion, suffered critical burns. The iron shutter of the shop was ripped off under the impact of the blast and acted as a missile, injuring many.
Nine of the 15 injured were discharged from hospital after first aid. The six were admitted to three hospitals, police said. “They are stable,” an officer of the Bidhannagar police said.
Mangled remains of what appeared to be an LPG cylinder have made the police suspect that the explosion occurred in the cylinder.
“Prima facie it was an LPG cylinder explosion. A forensic team’s initial opinion points in that direction, too,” said deputy commissioner, airport zone, Aishwarya Sagar.
The explosion was reported around 12.30pm in Rabindrapally — a busy neighbourhood off VIP Road — after which huge flames were seen leaping out of a building.
Rabindrapally, dotted with residential and commercial buildings, is a bylane around 10 minutes walk from VIP Road. The road is lined with shops, often with no gap between them, and footpaths are encroached on by hawkers.
A purported video of the incident shows the explosion and huge flames leaping out of the building. People were seen running helter-skelter.
Residents of the neighbourhood said that some time before the blast, one of them saw smoke coming out of the eatery and alerted its owner. The owner sent two of his employees to check. The duo were unlocking the shutter when the blast occurred.
The shop, which sells fritters and parathas every morning and evening, had shut down in the afternoon. It was supposed to reopen around 4.30pm, said Biswajit Halder, owner of a neighbouring shop.
“People were flung in the air before landing on the road. I saw some of them had flames on them. Some ran out with their clothes burned and torn. Some were gasping for breath,” he said.
The wires wrapped around lamp posts closest to the shop caught fire and shopkeepers as well as market-goers started running for their lives.
Among the injured were a few motorcyclists who were either passing by or standing nearby when the explosion happened.
Surajit Dey and Sanjay Dey, who were sent to check the source of the smoke, were severely injured, the police said.
Three fire tenders were sent to extinguish the flames.
Fire and emergency services minister Sujit Bose said the findings of an investigation by the fire department suggest an LPG cylinder had exploded.
“Our primary focus is to take care of the injured. If needed we will start a case accordingly,” said Bose.
Manish Mukherjee, councillor of Ward 24 of the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, where the shop is located, said none of the shops in the area has fire-fighting preparedness or any licence.
“None of the shops has a valid trade or fire licence, so far we know. I have complained multiple times and also carried out drives to check papers but there has been no effect at all,” Mukherjee said.
Among the injured are the building-owner’s son-in-law Tapas Dey and grandson Preetam, who were in a nearby sari shop and had rushed to the stall after hearing about the smoke.
Sudipto Sen, a contractual health worker of the civic body who had stopped to help, was also injured in the explosion.