In a second incident this year, 56 residents including two children near T Dasarahalli Lake Road in Peenya in Bengaluru have been admitted to a hospital after they complained of irritability and nausea following a gas leak.
Writing for Bangalore Mirror, Vandana Kamath reported that the residents suspected that the gas that was emanating was from a pharmaceutical factory in the same area causing severe vomiting, diarrhoea and laboured breath.
The newspaper reported that at 9:45pm on Monday the residents who were suffering called the ambulance service saying that close to 500 people complained of the problem.
However, 7 ambulances, which rushed to the spot, took 50 worst affected from the area to KC General Hospital in Malleshwaram.
Speaking to Bangalore Mirror, Veena SR, an emergency medical technician from `108' ambulance services who was deputed at the spot, said, “When we reached the spot, we saw close to 50 people who had vacated their houses, and standing by the road waiting for us to come. The others seemed to be okay and did not face such a severe problem. As soon as we reached there we realised there was a foul smell and our eyes started burning. There was some peculiar gas being emanated, but we did not know exactly which factory it was coming from. There were a lot of people including a two-month old baby who were by the roadside. We shifted the patients immediately to the hospital.”
However, according to the newspaper report, the hospital faced difficulty in accommodating a so many patients. But all patients were taken in for an initial check-up.
Muttu, a resident of the locality and a patient attendant, was quoted by BM saying, “The same smell had spread six months ago from a medicine factory and people had fallen ill. At that time there was a fight that broke out between the residents and the factory management, and the factory manager had said this would not repeat. I am not sure what gas it is, but many people complain of burning sensation as soon as the smell spreads. After which a few people vomited and some even fell unconscious creating a panic situation.”
The details of the gas that caused damage and whether it really leaked from a pharmaceutical factory are yet to be confirmed.
BM quoted Dr Manjunath, the medical superintendent of KC General Hospital, saying, “The people who came in complained of vomiting and uneasiness, coupled with extreme fear and apprehension. We were not able to figure out what the gas was that affected them, but we kept them under observation. Almost half of the people have been discharged. A two-year-old baby who has been admitted requires additional management and care, but is not in a critical condition.”
This is an aggregated news report from Bangalore Mirror