One person died and 20 people fell unconscious due to toxic gas leak at a pharma plant in Anakapalli, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday. All the victims have been admitted to the hospital.

It is being said that this accident happened due to leakage of liquid. The employees inhaled a mixture of HCl and choloroform. Choloroform is a volatile colorless dense liquid which is used as a solvent for industries and medical use.

10 people cleaned up the spill

The victims' family alleged that the manager tried to cover up the accident. Sources said no one took the accident seriously. When the gas ignited, they tried to douse the fire by pouring caustic soda. There were 180 people on the shift, of which 10 cleaned the leakage, the rest went home. Late in the evening, when the workers complained of breathing problems, they were admitted to hospital.

Odisha youth dies

A press note was issued by the pharma plant. It said that 400 liters of HCL in liquid form leaked from the reactor-cum-receiver tank (GLR-325) in the company's production plant and spilled on the floor below. In this accident, 23-year-old Amit (assistant), a resident of Odisha, died in the hospital. However, no employee has been seriously injured.

Victim admitted to hospital

The victims were shifted by the company to Pawan Sai Hospital in Gajuwaka, Visakhapatnam, the pharma official said. Three of the nine were later shifted to KIMS Hospital in Sheelanagar, Visakhapatnam.

An accident has happened here before

Let us tell you that last week three people were killed and nine injured after a gas leak at a fertilizer plant in Maharashtra. On November 22, a gas leak occurred due to an explosion in a reactor at a fertilizer plant in Sangli district of Maharashtra.

Senior Inspector Sangram Shewale of Kadegaon Police Station said that around 12 people working in the unit were affected due to the gas leak and were rushed to the hospital. Of these, two female employees and a security guard died. Nine others are undergoing treatment.