Two killed after AC gas cylinder explodes at Nalgonda

Two persons died after the compressor of an air-conditioner's outdoor unit exploded at a cold storage warehouse

Nalgonda: Two persons died after the compressor of an air-conditioner’s outdoor unit exploded at a cold storage warehouse of a fruit merchant at Barkatpura in Nalgonda town on Monday.

Sheik Khaleem (42), the owner of New Star Fruits and his employee, Sajeed (40), died on the spot in the incident. Five other workers, who were present in the cold storage warehouse, escaped unhurt.

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Nalgonda Town-I Circle Inspector N Gopi said the blast took place when the victims were trying to replace a compressor with a new one. It was suspected that the explosion took place due to the leakage of gas from the compressor in the AC’s outdoor unit.

The bodies were dismembered beyond recognition in the blast and were scattered in the warehouse. The wall of a house next to the warehouse also collapsed. Panic hit the people in the colony due to the loud blast.

Khaleem was running the cold storage unit in the residential area for the last 10 years. A CLUES team and bomb squad inspected the blast site. Police said Khaleem had tried to replace the compressor without the help of AC technicians, leading to the incident.

Superintendent of Police K Apoorva Rao visited the spot. A case has been registered and investigation is on.