Gas Leakage: 9 die, 400 hospitalized in India

Not less than nine people have died and 300 to 400 people hospitalized in Andhra Pradesh state’s Visakhapatnam district, following a gas leak incident at an LG Polymers plant in Visakhapatnam

Disclosing this on Thursday May 7, 2020, Swarupa Rani, an Assistant Commissioner of Police in Visakhapatnam, told reporters that “At least nine people had died and between 300 to 400 others were hospitalised. Another 1,500 people had been evacuated, mostly from a neighbouring village.”

The commissioner of the Visakhapatnam city corporation said styrene leaked from the plant during the early hours of the morning when families in the surrounding villages were asleep.

South Korean battery maker LG Chemical Ltd, the owner of the facility, located about 14 kilometres (8.6 miles) away from Visakhapatnam city, said the gas leak had been brought under control.

“We are looking into the exact damages, cause of the death and details of the incident,” the company said in a statement.