Palwal: A blast in the PNG gas pipeline on the Old GT Road triggered a huge fire in Palwal, Haryana, on Tuesday. Three shops and a JCB machine caught fire, while a person running a tea stall nearby was burnt to death. The incident happened when a pit was being dug for a water line with a JCB machine.
The fire was so fierce that it engulfed three shops. According to the police, a big pit was being dug with the help of a JCB machine to repair the drinking water line on Old GT Road. Due to digging too deep, the digging part of the JCB machine hit the PNG gas pipeline, which caused a spark and a huge fire broke out in the PNG gas line.
Cylinder blast: The fire first engulfed the tea shop running nearby. The gas cylinder kept inside the shop blasted and within no time three shops and the JCB machine caught fire. The driver of the JCB machine and the people working nearby somehow ran away from the spot and saved their lives. Many people also got injured in the rush. But Hariprakash Singla, who ran the tea shop, could not save himself from the fire and he died of burns. As soon as the information was received, fire brigade vehicles reached the spot and the fire was brought under control in a few hours.
As per the officials, four motorcycles were also burnt to ashes in this fire. Apart from this, goods worth lakhs of rupees were burnt to ashes. Laxman, a relative of the deceased Hariprakash Singla, said that this accident happened due to the negligence of government departments. The employees of Public Health and PNG Gas Pipeline are responsible for this and his elder brother died due to their negligence.
DSP Palwal Mahendra said that one person has died due to the fire and the investigation of the whole matter is going on.
Jatin, an eyewitness to the accident, said that excavation work was going on with a JCB machine. Suddenly there was a blast in the gas pipeline and a massive fire broke out, he said.
