Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh Police and other central security agencies have concurred after preliminary findings that Tuesday’s blast in a food eatry near Mall Road, about 100 metre away from police control room, occurred due to a gas leak from LPG cylinder.
Putting an end to different theories and speculations, district police chief Sanjay Gandhi said on Wednesday that there was a gas leak in the basement of a building which housed a popular eatery, Himachali Rasoi, resulted in a massive explosion on Tuesday evening, killing one person and injuring 13 others.
He said that impact of the blast was so intense that it damaged six to eight nearby shops and residences, and its sound and shockwave were felt about a kilometre away the spot.
Gandhi informed that the preliminary investigation has indicated that the explosion was not caused by an LPG cylinder blast, as initially speculated.
He explained that a massive gas leak might have occurred from an LPG commercial cylinder kept in small kitchen of eatery, which was shut on Tuesday, became a virtual gas bomb, leading to the powerful explosion.
“The situation turned dire as the leaked gas converted the eatery into a giant bomb, resulting in the impactful explosion,” SP informed while rejecting any suspicious involvement of anti-social elements in it.
Furthermore, the presence of a refrigeration compressor in the premises might have amplified the blast’s impact that left one dead and 13 others injured.
According to state police, five victims who suffered burns and bruises due to blast are currently receiving medical treatment, while eight others have been discharged.
Chief Fire officer Shimla who visited the spot stated that a couple of intact cylinders were found at the blast site, but no evidence of any blasted cylinder was recovered from the vicinity.
Meanwhile, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident. and it has promised to submit its report within seven days.
