Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Officials of National Investigation Agency (NIA) joined Jabalpur police on Friday to investigate the explosion that took place at a scrap ard on Thursday. Officers of the Ordnance Factory Khamaria (OFK), Central Ordnance Depot (COD) and SDRF are also involved in the investigations.
Two persons were missing after the blast and police have found body parts, which are believed to be belonging to the missing persons CCTV footage of the moment of the explosion shows thick plumes of smoke going up in the sky immediately after the blast. At the time of the incident, approximately ten individuals were present at the scene, adding complexity to the investigation.
ASP Sonali Dubey told Free Press that the NIA sleuths had not taken charge of the case so far. She said that reasons behind the blast are still not clear. “The nature of the explosives in the scrapyard and what triggered the blast are parts of the investigation,” the officer said.
She said that two persons including Bholu Kewat who were missing after the blast are still missing. Authorities have found a severed hand a chunk of flesh from under the debris.
“We have taken DNA samples of family members of the two missing persons to match it with the samples collected the severed hand and chunk o flesh to positively identify the victims,” ASP Sonali said.
The blast had occurred at a scrap yard owned by Raza Metal Industry on Thursday. Preliminary reports suggested a gas cylinder exploded during welding. However, it is suspected that significant quantity of explosive materials was present in the scrap yard that led to the huge explosion.
The special teams are investigating how bombs, typically used by the military, made their way into the scrap.
