Hyderabad: Nearly 200 personnel, comprising firefighters, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) staff and HYDRAA’s DRF staff, worked tirelessly to put off the fire caused by an explosion at the pharma factory of Sigachi Industries Ltd at Pashamylaram on Monday.
Speaking to this newspaper, Telangana Fire Services Director-General Y. Nagi Reddy said that the blast occurred in the drying unit of the factory. “The blast occurred at 9.48 am on Monday. Sigachi Industries manufactures microcrystalline cellulose powder.”
The microcrystalline cellulose powder is used in some vitamin tablets.
“The preliminary assumption is that the blast occurred in the drying unit, which dries the cellulose powder. During the processing, some error could have occurred, which resulted in the blast at the drying unit,” he said.
“Industrial experts assume that the pressure could have built up either during the drying process or during the handling process. This could have led to the material exploding, which resulted in the explosion of the drying unit and subsequently, the entire three-floor building went up in flames. We will know the exact reason for the blast during the industrial investigation shortly.”
“Eleven fire engines helped douse the fire, and more than 100 firefighters were at the spot. Along with them, the staff from NDRF and HYDRAA’s DRF also assisted us in dousing the fire and helping remove the debris from the site”, Nagi Reddy said.
HYDRAA stated 55 DRF staffers, including five DRF officers, were on the ground. HYDRAA commissioner A. V. Ranganath inspected the site after the blast and directed the DRF staff to coordinate with the fire department and assist the victims.
