CHENNAI: A 37-year-old woman was killed and five others sustained severe burn injuries after a refrigerant gas cylinder exploded at a cloud kitchen in Kannagi Nagar on Thursday afternoon, triggering a chain of blasts that ripped through two floors of a building.
The deceased, S Preethi of Kannagi Nagar, who suffered over 90% burns, died during treatment at a private hospital later in the evening. The injured Janani (14), Usha (49), Kalpana (29), Jeevitha (17) and Kannathasan (35), a delivery executive who had been waiting at the kitchen are undergoing treatment at a private hospital.
The police said AC repair work had been under way at the kitchen for three days. The blast happened around 2.30 pm when the mechanics had stepped out for lunch, leaving an R22 refrigerant gas-filling machine and welding gas cylinders unattended on the ground floor.
The excessive heat, built up inside the enclosed space, allegedly caused the explosion. The blast ruptured the kitchen’s gas pipeline and set off secondary explosions. Refrigerators on the premises burst open, and a fridge door got detached and fell on the victims, the police said.
Some of the injured had rushed to the spot after hearing the initial explosion in an attempt to rescue those trapped inside, only to be caught in the subsequent blasts, sources said.
The injured were initially taken to Royapettah Government Hospital before being shifted to a private facility for advanced care. Preethi’s body was sent to Royapettah GH for postmortem.
The Kannagi Nagar police registered a case under Sections 109 and 125(B) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against three persons: two AC mechanics and the floor in-charge of the cloud kitchen. All three have been arrested.