Ammonia leak: Disaster averted in Agartala

Agartala, April 19 (IANS) A prompt response from fire service personnel averted a major disaster here after they successfully contained an Ammonia gas leak from a local cold storage, officials said here Thursday.

The gas leak started abruptly Wednesday night and triggered panic among people residing near the cold storage who then informed the Fire department, a fire official told reporters. The leakage was temporarily sealed off soon after with the help of cold storage workers.

"Experts from Kolkata will arrive here soon to permanently cap the gas leakage from the cold storage in the congested capital city," the official said.

Fire service director general Kuldip Kumar and senior officials from the state pollution control board have visited the area and asked the owner to seal off the storeroom of the cold storage.

"There is no cause for concern at the moment. Our officials are keeping a close watch on the situation," Tripura Pollution Control Board chairman Mihir Deb told IANS.