2 brothers suffocate to death in cooling tower basin in Bengaluru

Bengaluru: Two brothers died and two of their co-workers sustained injuries while cleaning a cooling tower basin at a chemical factory in Jigani Industrial Area, Bengaluru Urban district, Thursday night.

The deceased have been identified as Lalu Singh, 38, and his elder brother Munna Singh, 40, residents of Vaddarapalya. Their co-workers, Bijay and Sumit, have been shifted to a private hospital and are under observation, police said.

Based on a complaint filed by Munna Singh’s wife, Reetu, police have booked office-bearers of Kumar Organics for death due to negligence. “There are many cooling tower basins in the chemical unit, which are regularly cleaned by workers wearing safety equipment such as masks, hand gloves, and helmets. However, Thursday evening, four workers stepped into the basins to clean them. After some time, three came up to have snacks while Munna Singh continued to clean. However, he fell unconscious inside and Lalu stepped in to pull him out. But he too fell unconscious. Seeing them, Bijay and Sumit entered the basin but they too lost consciousness. By then, other workers rushed to the spot, pulled all four outside, and shifted them to a nearby hospital. There, Munna and Lalu died,” Reetu stated in her complaint, adding, “The workers, including my husband and brother-in-law, were not given safety gear while cleaning the basins. The management should be held responsible for the incident.”

“We have issued notice to the persons concerned, directing them to appear before us,” a senior police officer said.