Residents panic as suspected chemical powder from refinery falls on their food in Mumbai

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A suspected chemical powder from a refinery fell on the food and vehicles of residents of Mahul village in Mumbai, triggering panic in the area, officials said on Sunday.

The incident took place around 11 pm on Saturday, when residents of Gawan Pada at Mahul village in suburban Chembur were celebrating a festival outside their homes, a fire official said.

They noticed some powder from the Hindustan Petroleum’s refinery located nearby falling on their food and vehicles, the official said.

The worried residents immediately alerted local police and the fire department.

Personnel of the fire department, police and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation reached the spot and immediately contacted officials of the refinery, the official said.

The plant officials were asked to close the work there, he said.

The personnel from the fire department, police and the civic body were present in the area till 1.30 am on Sunday and did not find anything suspicious, the fire official said, adding that suspected chemical substance stopped falling automatically after some time.

It was not a poisonous substance. After the incident, the plant officials were asked to shut the work temporarily and to rectify the problem,” RCF police station’s senior inspector Shrihari Ghavate said.

“We will wait for a report from the factory inspector and chemical pollution controller and on that basis, action will be taken if required, the police official said.