The leakage of the poisonous chlorine gas from a cylinder inside the Bombay Port Trust premises early on Wednesday morning triggered panic among students of the maritime colleges who were living at a hostel in the vicinity.
The Lal Bahadur Shastri (LBS) College of advances maritime studies and research, along with the Mari Engineering and Research Institute (Meri), share the same campus adjacent to the BPT.
Most of the students from these colleges, were either asleep or preparing for their exams when the incident occurred. Around 30 students have taken ill after inhaling the chlorine gas. Students have also complained of nausea and giddiness due to the chemical odour. “At around 3 am, a strong stench of noxious gas emanated in the hostel premises. Several among us began complaining of respiratory problems and few also fell unconscious,” said Ankit Puri, 25, a student at the LBS College.
“Our warden alerted us about the gas leak, after which students ran out of the hostel premises. By then, the police and the ambulances had arrived and they were rushing the victims to the hospitals,” Ankit said.
Examinations for some courses at the colleges were also underway. Amit Kumar Gautam, 19, a second year Bachelor of Maritime Science at Meri, was preparing for his exam, which was scheduled on Wednesday morning. “I was studying for my ship construction and design examination, when the incident took place. The exam has now been postponed,” Amit said.