Two labourers, trapped inside a Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) at a building in Mumbai`s Powai area on Wednesday, died after reportedly suffocating, officials said on Thursday.
According to the civic officials, the incident occurred at the Raj Grand Doi Building, opposite Hiranandani Hospital, around 10:42 am on November 12.
The two workers, employed by Ultra Tech Pvt. Ltd., had entered the STP for cleaning work when they reportedly inhaled toxic gases and lost consciousness, the officials said on Thursday.
Teams from the Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB), police, the 108 ambulance service, and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) ward staff carried out the rescue operation. Both men were pulled out and taken to Hiranandani Hospital for treatment.
According to the hospital, one of the workers, identified as Phulchand Kumar (28), died late on Wednesday night at 11:48 pm. The second victim, Akshay Mandal (25), was declared brought dead on arrival.
Officials said that the initial reports suggest that the two may have suffocated due to gas buildup inside the tank. The police are investigating the case, and the BMC has been informed about the incident.
Meanwhile, in an another incident, last week, at leats five people were injured after a fire broke out at the kitchen area of McDonald’s inside a mall in Dadar area of central Mumbai, civic officials had said last Friday.
Medical staff at KEM Hospital reported that five individuals, including firefighters and McDonald’s staff, suffered from suffocation during the incident. All of them are stated to be in stable condition.
Those affected include Firemen Kapil Dhamare (26), Pravin Pawar (32), and Sanju Padvi (29), Senior Station Officer Harisha Narkar (45), and contractual worker Sudharshan Ahire (33).
The blaze was reported at the eatery located N C Kelkar Marg, opposite Shiv Sena Bhavan in Dadar (West), they said.
According to preliminary information from the Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB), the incident was reported at 3:32 pm, and the MFB declared it a Level-1 (minor) fire at 3:48 pm.
Teams from the MFB, Mumbai Police, 108 ambulance services, and ward staff quickly rushed to the spot.
Firefighters from the Mumbai Fire Brigade, along with police and ward staff, promptly reached the spot and managed to bring the situation under control.
“The fire was confined to the McDonald’s kitchen and was fully extinguished by 6:10 pm,” officials said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, officials said.
