Jodhpur Park cafe blast injures one, cops suspect LPG leakage
Times of India | 9 August 2024
Kolkata: A 30-year-old man was seriously injured in an explosion inside a Jodhpur Park cafe on Wednesday morning.
The explosion occurred when Chadrakumar Gurung, the cook at the cafe, reportedly tried to light the gas. The blast started off a fire inside.
Police said the cafe had just opened for business for the day and so, there was no customer present at the time of the incident.The blast caused the shop’s shutter to blow off and land 10 metre away. It also shattered the glass door and the entire kitchen area was damaged. Several neighbours also rushed out of their residences on hearing the sound that they insisted was similar to that of a bomb blast.
Gurung had to be rescued by fire department personnel. He was admitted to a hospital, where his condition was stated to be serious.
The cafe, Mushtang— The Ramen Club, is located on the ground floor of a three-story building and has been running for the past two years.
Cops suspect that a leaking LPG cylinder could be the cause of the incident, but they are waiting for the forensic reports to ascertain the cause of the incident. The report from the fire department is also awaited. “Employees entered the cafe, and one of them was injured. The severity of his injury and the losses is being analyzed. It is unclear how the explosion occurred. An investigation is on,” said a deputy commissioner.
However, Mohitosh Basu, a local said that the rescuers had recovered the cylinder intact. One resident speculated that gas might have leaked from a cylinder and accumulated overnight, while the cafe was closed. When the cafe opened in the morning, the gas might have been ignited, causing the explosion.
“Following the explosion, a fire broke out in the cafe. Firefighters arrived after receiving the news,” said Pradip Mukherjee, a local.