3 Dead, 9 Injured in Fertilizer Plant Explosion

Three people were killed and nine others hospitalized after a gas leak from an explosion at a fertilizer plant on Thursday evening in the Sangli District of Myanmar, India.

The incident occurred at Myanmar Chemical Co., a fertilizer plant, around 6:30 p.m., The Times of India reports. A reactor exploded, leading to an ammonia gas release. Two women workers and a security guard died from exposure while seven others remain hospitalized, five who are critical.

The district’s Superintendent of Police, Sandip Ghuge, confirmed that the gas was ammonia.

Authorities are now investigating the cause of the reactor blast and the gas leak.

Myanmar Chemical Co. was operational in 2018. The company has 4 plants and other farms around India. The fertilizer plant produces organic and compound fertilizer in various formulas.

In May, 11 persons were killed and more than 64 others injured from an explosion at a chemical factory in Maharashtra's Thane district. As a boiler exploded at Amudan Chemical, the impact of the explosion and the resulting fire affected adjacent factories and houses. The factory produces food coloring and uses highly reactive chemicals.