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Ludhiana: Locals ignore signs that could have averted tragedy
Sanjay Kumar Gupta, a resident of Samrat colony of Giaspura, said that his son had gone to buy milk from a shop of one of the victims Saurav Goyal at around 6am
The gas leak tragedy in Giaspura could have been averted if the locals had paid attention to the foul smell spreading in the area since early morning.
Sanjay Kumar Gupta, a resident of Samrat colony of Giaspura, said that his son had gone to buy milk from a shop of one of the victims Saurav Goyal at around 6am. After returning home, he informed him about the smell.
“I went to the shop to check and talked to the shopkeeper about it, who told me that he has been noticing the smell since morning. As it had rained on Saturday night, we assumed that the smell was coming from the sewerage due to rain and carried on with our daily routine,” Gupta said.
“Around 7.30am, I came to know that a major tragedy has happened at the shop and people are lying dead on the road. The trench gas has engulfed the whole area. The locals either had shut their doors and windows or went to safe places after locking their houses,” he added.
Meanwhile, police reached the spot and initiated a rescue operation.
Gupta said that he helped the police in convincing the locals to vacate the area.
Amandeep Singh of Kidwai Nagar owns a garment shop near the spot. He is worried about his two workers who were untraceable after the incident.
“My two workers used to stay in the room above the shop. On Sunday morning, when I reached here, they were not at the shop. Their mobile phones are also switched off. It may be possible that they have gone somewhere after the incident,” Singh said.
Singh said that knows the victims very well as they used to buy clothes from his shop.
