New Delhi: A gas leak in a slum area in South Africa’s Boksburg caused panic. 24 people including 3 children and 5 women have died due to poisonous gas leaking from a cylinder in Boksburg. Currently, relief operations are going on and the victims have been taken to the hospital.
Accident due to leakage from cylinder
South African police said on Wednesday that the accident happened in a township in the town of Boksburg on the eastern border of Johannesburg. Emergency services spokesman William Natladi said the incident was caused by a leak from a gas cylinder stored in a shack in Angelo Township. He said that when we reached the spot, dead bodies were lying in and around the accident site. Police and ambulance also reached the spot after getting information about the incident. He said preliminary information indicated that the gas was being used ‘as part of illegal mining activities’.
The condition of 4 people among the injured is very serious
According to information, the condition of 4 people among the injured is very serious while the condition of 11 is serious but stable. Emergency services received a call about a gas explosion at 8pm but on reaching the scene, they discovered that toxic gas was leaking from a cylinder. Johannesburg is the commercial center of South Africa and around it a large number of miners work in difficult and dangerous conditions. In Boksburg on Christmas Eve last year, a truck carrying LPG got stuck under a bridge and exploded, killing 41 people.