Fire incident at deodorant unit raises questions on safety

The fire at a deodorant unit at Ramasandra in Kumbalagodu in which three persons were charred to dead, has now put the safety of workers in the informal sector back in the spotlight, apart from the risk such units present to those near them.

The fire at a deodorant unit at Ramasandra in Kumbalagodu in which three persons were charred to dead, has now put the safety of workers in the informal sector back in the spotlight, apart from the risk such units present to those near them.

The police are still ascertaining if the unit was only crushing cans or also refilling them. Usually, junk dealers collect the empty cans and store them before crushing the same to sell them. These aerosol cans are manufactured using aluminum and the crushed cans are sold to be melted.

With some of these units being situated in densely populated residential areas, residents are also seeking answers.

Jyothi, a resident of the area near the deodorant unit, said the smell from the unit was unbearable and when they complained to the owner, he assured them that work will be completed in two days.

Ms. Jyoti said that on Sunday evening, she heard a massive blast and saw thick smoke billowing out of the shed-like structure. “Fortunately, the fire did not reach our house. Otherwise, even our lives would have been at risk,” she said. 

“That unit has been operating for a few days now and no one knew what was happening inside. We want the authorities concerned to keep a check in residential areas to prevent such accidents,” said Ramalingappa, another resident.

Sandhya Narayan, a solid waste management expert, said if this was crushing space, this is an informal sector and they do not require any licence to function. “If flammable materials are placed in the shed, then they have to have safety measures like fire extinguishers. But normally since this sector is informal, there will be no safety measures in place. This will put the lives of people who work there at risk,” she said.