On Thursday, a blast at Gujarat Fluorochemicals Limited (GFL) in Goghamba, Gujarat’s Panchmahal district, killed two workers and injured 15 others. An explosion occurred around 10 a.m. inside the MPI-1 unit of the refrigerant manufacturing plant in Ranjitnagar, Goghamba, as per the district police officials. According to the police, the sound of the explosion could be heard several kilometres away in the taluka.
Leena Patil, the Superintendent of Police in Panchmahal, confirmed the deaths. “So far, two people have died as a result of the explosion. The number of people injured and those in critical condition has yet to be confirmed. At least 14 to 15 more people have been seriously injured. A team of firefighters is assessing the situation to see if anyone is trapped inside the complex. “The nature of the explosion has yet to be confirmed,” Patil said.
Fire tenders from all over the district were dispatched to the scene, including private companies from Halol, Kalol, and Godhra.
The district police have shut down a five-kilometer approach road to GFL’s Ranjitnagar complex, which is owned by INOX. According to the company’s official website, the facility produces fluorospecialties and refrigerants.
GFL’s single largest refrigerant plant in India was the site of the explosion.
“Since its inception in 1989, the site has grown to include four multi-purpose plants that are well equipped to handle a wide range of chemistry for fluorospeciality products in the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries around the world.” The site is self-sufficient in terms of research and development, process scale-up, and technology transfer, according to the website.