(LiveMint)
Indian authorities on Thursday ordered an inquiry to determine within seven days the cause of a blast at a coal-fired power plant that killed 26 people and injured more than 100 — one of the country’s worst industrial accidents in years.More than 20 survivors were battling for life with severe burn injuries following Wednesday’s blast at the 1,550-megawatt plant operated by state-owned NTPC in Uttar Pradesh, state officials said.
Arvind Kumar, a principal secretary, said some of the severely injured had been taken to a hospital in the state capital Lucknow.“Blockages in the flue gas pipe in a unit led to the blast. Hot flue gases and steam let out by the blast severely injured several workers,” Sanjay Kumar Khatri, the top government official of Raebareli district where the plant is located, told Reuters on Thursday.
“A magisterial inquiry has been initiated. This two-member technical team will submit findings within seven days,” Khatri said. NTPC is the country’s top power producer and accidents have been rare at its facilities.Senior state police official Anand Kumar said in a statement posted online on Wednesday that ash had piled up in the furnace beneath the boiler, which led to building up of pressure resulting in the explosion.
