The explosion was so loud that the people in the neighbourhood hid in their houses.
Chandauli, Uttar Pradesh: Two people died today in a horrific cylinder blast outside a private hospital in Uttar Pradesh's Chandauli district. The explosion was so loud that the people in the neighbourhood hid in their houses.
The explosion shattered glasses in the hospital and houses nearby, and the two bodies were badly mangled from the impact. Visuals showed them lying on the road amid chaos in the area. A truck carrying several oxygen cylinders is also seen parked in the middle of the road.
The local Superintendent of Police and Mughalsarai MLA reached the spot immediately. The police took the dead body into custody, and sent it for autopsy. Security camera footage from the surrounding areas is being investigated.
The explosion, outside Dayal Hospital in the Ravi Nagar area of Mughalsarai city, happened between 9:00 am and 9:30 am while oxygen cylinders were being unloaded from a truck that was parked outside the hospital.
A huge crowd gathered around the spot, and the fire brigade also rushed there.
Superintendent of Police Ankur Aggarwal inspected the spot and a forensics team was called in. Both the people who died used to work in the company that supplied oxygen cylinders.
A truck carrying bricks can also be seen at the spot. The driver of this truck reportedly abandoned his vehicle and ran for his life on hearing the explosion.
The police are investigating whether the oxygen cylinders' refilling and packing was done properly.