CHENNAI: The death toll in the cylinder blast at a goldsmith unit in Sowcarpet rose to five after three other workers who suffered burn injuries succumbed in the last two days at the hospital.
The incident happened last Wednesday (February 25). Seven people, including the owner of the goldsmith unit, suffered severe burn injuries after a gas cylinder exploded while melting gold at the workshop on Singanna Naicken Street in Sowcarpet.
A day later, the owner of the unit, Suman Bhag alias Biswajit (32), succumbed to the burns, and another worker, Srimanta (48), died on Sunday night at the hospital.
Subsequently, three more workers succumbed without responding to treatment in the last two days, police said. One of the injured, Rakesh (26), died on Tuesday, while two others, Suraj Dholey (23) and Arabindo (28), died on Wednesday.
According to the police, Rakesh had suffered 41 per cent burns, while Suraj and Arabindu sustained 85 per cent and 75 per cent burns, respectively.
Two other workers, Jayanta (43) and Ananta Ketrapal (36), are undergoing treatment at the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital.
The blast occurred at the unit operating on the fourth floor of a commercial building. According to the police, the workers were using a handheld gas cutter at the time of the leak, triggering an explosion.