Surat Tragedy: Four Workers Die After Inhaling Toxic Fumes Inside Jewellery Factory Septic Tank

Surat: About four workers have died after inhaling toxic fumes while cleaning a septic tank at a jewellery manufacturing unit in Gujarat's Surat city on Sunday morning, according to police.

Where did the incident happen?

The incident occurred at the septic tank, which collects waste from the jewellery cleaning process, in the Ashwini Kumar area, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone-1, Alok Kumar.

Four workers cleaning the septic tank at a jewellery manufacturing unit died of suffocation due to toxic gas. The incident has caused widespread panic in the area.

What happen?

According to reports, four workers went to clean a tank at jewellery manufacturing unit near Varachha Sugar Market this morning. During the cleaning, the toxic gas inside the tank suddenly suffocated them. Due to the intense effects of the toxic gas, all four workers immediately fell unconscious inside the tank.

Four labourers unconscious in the tank?

At 10:22 am, the fire department received a call reporting a man trapped in a tank. However, when the fire brigade team arrived on the scene within minutes and began the rescue operation, they found not one but four people trapped inside the tank, unconscious and in critical condition. After considerable effort, the fire team extricated all four.

What did the officials say?

The facility's septic tank undergoes cleaning and maintenance every two months. This morning, four individuals - a supervisor and three labourers - entered the tank. They collapsed due to the effects of poisonous gas and all of them died, the official said.

"We are examining whose negligence led to the incident, as preliminary investigations indicate that safety protocols were not followed. Nevertheless, we will conduct a detailed investigation into the matter," he said.

The supervisor called the fire department before himself entering the tank, and preliminary findings indicate they lacked any safety equipment, the DCP said.

Divisional Fire Officer Khadia Ranjit Singh said that Rati Jewellers, located in Khand Bazaar, is an industrial unit that deals in gold and jewelry, and the waste and raw materials are collected in an ETP plant. Contractor workers were called in today for cleaning, and four people fell inside, but the fire department was only notified of one person falling.

An investigation at the scene revealed that four people had fallen inside. They were rescued and taken to Smeier Hospital. When they were pulled out, all four were unconscious. They were not wearing any safety equipment, and a search of the surrounding area revealed nothing.