SHIMLA - In a devastating incident, a powerful cylinder blast occurred around 7.20PM on July 18 today at a Himachal Rasoi  dhaba in the middle bazaar of Shimla, resulting in the death of one Dhabha owner and fatal burn injuries to ten other workers, one of whom is in critical condition. The area surrounding The Mall has been cordoned off by the police as authorities investigate the cause of the explosion.

The  victim of the accidental explosion,  Raju, an owner of New Plaza dhaba, was going back to his  Dhaba around 7.20 PM through this Middle bazar street. Tragically, he was struck by the falling debris  from the upper story that collapsed due to the impact of the blast. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Other  injured were pulled out from the blast site one by one by  locals  and firemen and police after the fire brigade doused the fire.

They  were rescued  from wreckage and brought  to the benches located in front of police Reporting Room on The Mall before 108  ambulances arrived. 

There were 10 workers in Himachal Rasoi,  nearby Kitchen of the adjoining cafe Zero and others when the blast took place.

The injured workers who sustained serious burns on their faces and bodies, were rushed to the Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) in the first-aid police vehicles which arrived at the scene soon after the Fire Brigade, which is housed in the next seventh  buildings from the site of the accident, doused the fire. 

The injured are under treatment for their burn injuries and are reported to be safe at IGMC. 

However, one worker's condition is reported to be serious, as confirmed by SP Shimla, Sanjeev Gandhi, who personally supervised the rescue operation and rushed them to the hospital in ambulances and the police first aid  vehicles.

The impact of the blast was so intense that it shattered window panes of nearby eateries  cafes, show rooms, photo palace, residences  located in the  five storied buildings that come up from the Middle Bazar to The Mall. The workers were  left  in a state of shock after deserted the showrooms and Cafes.

These Cafes are frequented by the youngsters.  

There were cracks in the floor of the showrooms and blast hit  shops that have baffled their  owners. 

The investigation into the incident is being led by SP Shimla, who is actively coordinating efforts with the forensic team and  other officials including ADM at the site.

He said the all injured have been rushed to IGMC and now nobody is trapped inside the smashed cafes or dhabhas. The showrooms  that got the jolt included Hideout cafe, Xeros, bakery, Wild Craft, Madame,  Addidas and one show room located 200 m away on The Mall had its glass windowpanes broken. 

The blast's reverberations were felt in several localities throughout the city, prompting concerned citizens on The Mall to rush to the scene.

Fortunately, all the workers employed in the neighboring showrooms, whose windows were also shattered, and locals who live in the middle bazaar near the site were confirmed to be safe.

They rushed out  soon as the windowpanes broke due to the powerful vibration and sound and were in panic. 

There are inputs that the nearby people smelled the leakage of the LPG gas cylinder few minutes before the blast. 

SP Shimla has ruled out any possibility of bomb or some explosive so far as the forensic investigation is on. 

 All the smashed show rooms  and dhabas are being examined. 

Emergency services, including ambulances  were present at the scene, and a high-level team has been deployed to assess the situation and provide necessary support.

The authorities are working diligently to ascertain the cause of the blast and ensure the safety of the affected individuals.

 It was the second major cylinder blast incident after a similar blast smashed the attic of the new OPD block of the IGMC few months ago. 

The blasts continued to be a major hazards in the city, but the  gas companies, which charge inspection charges from their consumers illegally, but they did not bother to inspect the dhabas, houses in the city.   

The saving grace was that there were few tourists and locals in the dhabas and cases and showrooms today  in an otherwise jampacked The Mall Road due to  the slack tourist season.  Yet huge crowd gathered at hhe scene as soon as they heard  the blast and sirens of ambulances and fire brigade.