Explosion at Anakapalle Factory Claims Worker’s Life

A tragic incident occurred at Vasant Chemicals Private Ltd within the special economic zone (SEZ) in Atchutapuram, Anakapalle district, on Wednesday, resulting in the death of a contract worker. The fatal explosion happened just days after the Anakapalle district administration held a meeting to discuss factory safety measures.

The victim, identified as 44-year-old Pradeep Rout, was employed as a helper at the factory and hailed from Odisha.

The explosion was triggered by excessive pressure in the reactor, causing a critical failure of the safety valves. This failure led to hot chemicals being released onto Pradeep, igniting a flash fire within the facility.

An initial investigation by the factories department indicated that the explosion occurred during the processing of BTDA chemicals in the production block 6. The incident took place at the halar-coated autoclave reactor. The safety relief valve and rupture disc pipes, which were connected to the dump tank, malfunctioned, causing the reaction mass to spill into the room where Pradeep was working.

Upon hearing the explosion, fellow workers quickly intervened, shutting down the reactor and extinguishing the fire within ten minutes. Despite being rushed to NTR Hospital in Anakapalle, Pradeep was pronounced dead on arrival.

A preliminary report on the incident will be submitted to the district collector.

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