Kanpur: The death toll in the Fatehpur LPG cylinder blast incident rose to five after a 25-year-old man who had suffered severe burns died during treatment at Malwa Medical College early Tuesday, a senior police official said.
The blast, which took place at a residence in Fatehpur's Malwa town, brought down a two-storey building and damaged several neighbouring houses.
Superintendent of Police (Fatehpur) Abhimanyu Manglik told PTI that preliminary probe indicates that the blast was caused by a leak in an LPG cylinder.
Investigation also suggests that batteries used in a solar power system were kept inside the house, which exploded during the incident, intensifying its impact, the official added.
The explosion occurred around 5 pm on Monday while meals were being prepared at the house of Suresh Gupta, a fruit and vegetable vendor. A suspected gas leak triggered a fire, leading to explosion of multiple LPG cylinders, according to preliminary findings.
Seven people were rescued from the debris and taken to hospital.
Four of them -- Kunal Gupta (18), Arpit Gupta (15), Ved Gupta (8) and Yash Gupta (4) -- died Monday, while Alok Gupta (25) succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday, the SP told PTI.
Suresh Gupta (50) and his seven-year-old nephew Om were also injured. Their condition is stated to be stable, police said.
The explosion flattened the Gupta residence and two adjoining structures, besides damaging several other houses in the vicinity. The narrow lane made it difficult for fire tenders and heavy rescue vehicles to reach the site.
Police and fire brigade personnel, assisted by local residents, carried out the initial rescue operation, while a State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) team from Lucknow later joined the effort.
Heavy machinery was brought in after parts of adjoining properties were cleared to create access.
The exact cause of the explosion and sequence of event are being investigated, the SP said, adding that the LPG cylinders and other material recovered from the site are being examined as part of the probe.
