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Bulandshahr (UP): Six people died and three were injured following an oxygen cylinder blast which led to a partial house collapse in the Sikandrabad area of Bulandshahr district, officials said on Tuesday.
District Magistrate of Bulandshahr Chandra Prakash Singh said the incident occurred on Monday evening in the house of one Riyazuddin in which around 19 people, including women and children, were living.
Riyazuddin was involved in shuttering work -- the process of giving support and stability to concrete during construction work before it becomes solid.
The initial death toll was five which increased to six in the early hours of Tuesday. City Magistrate Chandra Prakash Priyadarshi said six bodies -- three male and three female -- were brought to the district hospital.
According to officials, those dead were identified as Riyazuddin alias Raju (50), his wife Rukhsana (45), Salman (16), Tamanna (24), Hivja (3) and Aas Mohammed (26).
DM Singh said, "A cylinder blast occurred in the Ashapuri colony of Sikandrabad between 8.30 pm and 9 pm leading to the collapse of the entire house." He said eight residents were taken to the hospital while others were safe.
Additional Director General of Police, Meerut Zone, Dhruva Kant Thakur said information about the casualties was received, after which rescue and relief operations were launched immediately.
Personnel of the NDRF, fire brigade, police, medical and the local administration were involved in the rescue work, he said.
"Chief Minister (Yogi Adityanath) took immediate cognisance of the incident. We were sent to the spot and directions were issued that good quality treatment should be given to the injured persons," the DM said.
About the rescue operation, he said the iron beams of the roof of the house had to be pried open using gas cutters. At the same time, an excavator was pressed into action to clear the debris.
On Tuesday morning, Senior Superintendent of Police of Bulandshahr Shlok Kumar told PTI that the rescue operation had been completed at the site.
Although the surviving family members have said that no one was trapped under the debris anymore, the rescue teams took all precautions while carrying out their work, he added.
"A total of six persons have died and another three suffered injuries in the blast because of which the front portion of the double-storey house collapsed," Kumar said.
The wife of Riyazuddin was undergoing treatment for an ailment at a hospital and was recently brought back to the home, where the family had brought an oxygen cylinder along with its accessories to help in the post hospitalisation care, the SSP said.
"This oxygen cylinder exploded. The cylinder, its nozzle, etc have been recovered from the debris," the district police chief told PTI.
The bodies have been sent for post-mortem and further legal proceedings in the matter are underway, he added.