Explosion from gas leak in vacant Thane flat causes panic

The first floor flat of Devdeep Society, near KV school, was used as office space by an art direction company and has been closed for more than a month

An explosion due to leakage of gas cylinder hose of a flat in Rabodi on Friday morning led to panic in the nearby areas.

The impact of the blast was so huge that the walls and windows of the flat collapsed (HT Photo)

The first floor flat of Devdeep Society, near KV school, was used as office space by an art direction company and has been closed for more than a month. A bomb squad was called in to detect the source of explosion.

The explosion took place at 8.30am. Neighbours heard the explosion and informed the fire brigade. The fire brigade, along with Regional Disaster Management Cell (RDMC) and bomb detection squad, reached the spot.

The impact of the blast was so huge that the walls and windows of the flat collapsed. The door was broken along with its frame. The window grills, too, were unhinged while the electronic equipments like computers and music system were damaged, informed Santosh Kadam, chief of RDMC, Thane.

Kadam said, “The bomb squad found that the cause of explosion was the leakage in hose pipe of the gas cylinders in the office. The pipe was ruptured and due to the pressure, the explosion took place. The room was completely closed with no ventilation, thus leading to heavy damage.”

Rabodi police station senior police inspector, R Shirtode, said, “We conducted an examination of the room with the help of a dog squad and did not find anything suspicious in the explosion. It is confirmed that it was due to gas leak.”