The deceased were identified as Raja 40, and Santhosh, 32 of Annai Sathya Nagar. The Fire and Rescue Services sources said two teams (one from Secretariat fire station and another from Esplanade station) were called in for rescue work around 11.30 am.

Police, after visiting the scene, said while two victims had fallen unconscious inside, a third person identified as Venkatesh managed to get out of the tank immediately after he sensed trouble. The two were declared ‘brought dead’ by Army hospital doctors inside the same campus, the police said.

Police officers from Fort station on Friday evening said they are in the final stage of registering a case after parleys with legal teams as the incident happened on a premise controlled by the Army.