In a tragic incident, as many as 59 students were affected after being exposed to fumes emanating from a storage tank at JSW Energy's plant in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district on Thursday, police said. The incident occurred when fumes from the plant spread to nearby areas, impacting the health of several students, they added. Authorities are investigating the source and composition of the fumes to ascertain their potential health risks. While police said the tank was in the JSW Jaigad Port LPG facility, the company said no such incident took place on their premises.
The students are from the Jaigad Vidya Mandir school, which is near the plant. Of the 250 students who were in the school, 59 complained of watery eyes and irritation after exposure to fumes emanating during the cleaning process of the tank, police said.
Some of them were taken to a nearby hospital, police added. The fumes were from Ethyl mercaptan, which is a colourless, flammable, and highly odorous liquid that is used as an odorant for natural gas and as a starting material for plastics, insecticides, and antioxidants, a police official said.
Of the 250 students who were in the school, 53 boys, six girls and a woman were admitted to different hospitals after they complained of eye irritation, restlessness and nausea following exposure to fumes coming from the cleaning process of the tank, officials said. “Three students are in the ICU though their health is stable. Compared to the others, they are experiencing more restlessness and nausea, and have complained of an aggravated stomach ache,” a health official from the district civil hospital told the media.
The students are under observation and will most likely be discharged on Friday afternoon, he said, adding that doctors will conduct a thorough check-up before letting the children go home.
(With inputs from PTI)
