Bhopal: At least 50 students of a private school in Chhindawara were hospitalised on Wednesday after they complained of uneasiness following inhalation of ammonia gas which leaked from an adjoining cold storage. Police have booked and arrested the cold storage owner Ambika Tulsiana for negligence. District Collector J K Jain has ordered an inquiry into the incident.
Superintendent of police Gourav Tiwari said that the incident occurred in the morning when the gas was being filled in the plant. Nearly 800 students were present on the Bharat Bharti school campus when the gas leaked. “Fifty students were taken to the district hospital after they complained about uneasiness. They were sent home after medical check-up and being provided medication. We have evacuated the school,” Jain said.
The students had assembled on the school campus for the daily prayer when the ammonia gas leaked from a pipeline at around 10.15 am. After the leak, some students complained of uneasiness, he said. The ammonia gas leakage caused an explosion of a cylinder in the cold storage, Jain said. Students and teachers who were admitted to the hospital were given primary treatment and were discharged in the evening. One of the students, who jumped from the roof and got his foot injured, is being treated. SP Tiwari said teams of fire brigade and ambulances were rushed to the spot after the incident was reported. “The situation is now under control and we are questioning the cold storage owner,” he said.
