Locals said the incident had happened around 10 am, leaving the house in ruins. Police, firefighters, and NDRF personnel as well as senior officials, including Ghaziabad SSP Muniraj G and District Magistrate Rakesh Kumar, rushed to the spot. Four people, including a toddler, were killed when a two-storey house in Ghaziabad’s Loni collapsed, after an apparent LPG cylinder explosion, on Wednesday morning.
Police said the explosion took place in the house of Munir, an auto driver. The collapse resulted in the deaths of his daughter Sania (15), his daughter-in-law Rukhaya (24), his granddaughter Inayat (2), and another relative Shabnoor (21). Munir’s wife Mehraj (45) and a relative Baby (18) survived.
Locals said the incident had happened around 10 am, leaving the house in ruins. Police, firefighters, and NDRF personnel as well as senior officials, including Ghaziabad SSP Muniraj G and District Magistrate Rakesh Kumar, rushed to the spot.
Loni SHO Santosh Kumar said, “It seems that the cause of the incident was an LPG cylinder explosion, and Mehraj has also said the same on record. However, the forensic team and NDRF are at the spot along with a sniffer dog. Based on evidence, we will carry out further investigation into the incident.” He added that Munir was out of station at the moment.
Curious locals thronged the spot after officials departed, with only smashed bricks and rubble strewn across the alley remaining where the house once stood. A motorcycle had also been sent flying and dented by the explosion. Local resident Mohammad Rashid said: “It was a terrible incident… some were burned in the legs, others in the hands…”
A neighbour, Rozuddin, who was in his house when the explosion happened, said: “We heard a very loud noise and saw that the house had collapsed completely. We started pulling people out of the rubble and called the authorities. Police and ambulances also arrived. They (the victims) were in a very bad state, I cannot even describe it… Neither Munir nor his son Mujassar were at home at the time.”
Baby, who was admitted to Parakh Hospital in Ghaziabad, spoke with difficulty, describing the event: “I was sitting downstairs while Shabnoor was cooking upstairs… suddenly, the cylinder exploded and the whole house collapsed.” Her legs were injured by the falling rubble. Meanwhile, Mehraj was shifted from GTB Hospital to Safdarjung on account of burns on her hands.
District Magistrate Kumar said: “We are taking down details of victims and will provide financial assistance if need be.”
This incident happened a day after another Ghaziabad explosion involving a TV, which left a teenager dead.