At least five people are reportedly dead and 17 have sustained injuries in a boiler blast at the Neyveli Thermal Power Station in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu on Wednesday. The blast occurred in Unit 5 of Plant 2.
Contract workers and permanent staff were active at the 210 MW unit at the time of the blast. The death toll is feared to be set to rise as many are still trapped inside.
Major blast in Stage -2 of the #Neyveli lignite plant.
— Mugilan Chandrakumar (@Mugilan__C) July 1, 2020
Unit 5 in the Neyveli lignite plant has exploded.
Sources say at least 17 injured many are struck inside the unit 2,Casualties feared. Rescue operations is underway. pic.twitter.com/06xX09HHMI
The dangers of coal powered plants.
— Krithiga Narayanan (@Krithiganarayan) July 1, 2020
Massive boiler blast at Neyveli Lignite Corporation's powre plant. 4 dead, 17 gravely injured. This is the second such blast since May. #Neyveli
Warning - Graphic images. pic.twitter.com/GOuTHBnqfg
#Tamilnadu #Neyveli లో ఊహించని విషాదం
— TeluguBulletin.com (@TeluguBulletin) July 1, 2020
Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited Unit 5, Plant 2 లో బాయిలర్ బ్లాస్ట్ అవడంతో 5గురు మృతి, మరియు పూర్తిగా కాలిపోయిన 17మంది , గత రెండునెలల్లో ఇది రెండో ప్రమాదం .. మొదటిసారి ప్రమాదం జరిగిన తరువాత కూడా కనీస జాగ్రత్తలు పాటించలేదని తెలుస్తుంది pic.twitter.com/lm5iM9kQF6
The Neyveli Lignite Corporation has its own fire-fighting teams, which rushed to the site following the blast.
Rescue teams from the Cuddalore district administration also reached the spot to assess the situation. The cause of the blast is under investigation.
News daily Indian Express quoted activist Nityanand Jayaraman as saying that the five people who were killed were contract workers. He said this is the second blast to have occurred at the factory since the lockdown was imposed in March.
On 7 May, a blast at the Neyveli Lignite Corporation's plant in Cuddalore left eight workers injured. In India, 70% of electricity is generated by thermal power plants.
