Escientia fire: Escientia fire: 1 hour delay in dealing with leakage led to 17 deaths | Visakhapatnam News
Visakhapatnam: The Work accident at the pharmaceutical company Escientia on August 21, 17 people were killed and 40 others injured. According to an official report seen by TOI, the production team noticed a pungent smell of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) around 1 pm on that tragic day.
Upon verification, it was found that MTBE was continuously leaking from a transfer line and falling through a slot on the first floor onto the MCC (Motor Control Center) panel on the ground floor.
Despite the obvious danger, the engineering and production teams did not address the leak because it was their lunch break.
The entire building has been equipped with recirculated air handling units (AHUs) by installing ducts on all floors, while the main AHU units are located on the ground floor.
At the same time, MTBE fumes on the ground and first floors were extracted through these AHUs and discharged to other areas such as offices, quality control laboratories, and supply and material storage areas.
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