Eleven people have died and four more were hospitalised after a gas leak in northern India’s Punjab state.
Key points:
- Officials in the area say customers outside a milk shop fell unconscious in the street
- Experts are investigating the cordoned off area in search of the source
- The state’s chief minister says the leak came from a factory
The incident occurred at an industrial area in Ludhiana city on Sunday local time, but the source of the gas leak is still unclear, police told the Press Trust of India news agency.
India’s National Disaster Response Force sealed off the densely populated area and evacuated residents.
A team of experts were working to determine the cause and source of the leak, said Rajinder Pal Kaur Chhina, a member of legislative assembly in Ludhiana.
Police officials were seen patrolling wearing masks and asking locals to keep out of a cordoned area, according to ANI news agency’s video feed on Twitter.
“The incident happened near a milk shop and a doctor’s clinic although we cannot say for sure where the leak began,” Ms Chhina told Reuters by phone.
“People who came to buy milk in the morning, fell unconscious outside,” she said.
The state’s chief minister, Bhagwant Mann, said the leak came from a factory but did not provide more details in a tweet.
“All possible help is being provided,” he wrote.
AP/Reuters