A 22-year-old woman was killed and three others were critically injured when a hydrogen gas cylinder exploded while inflating balloons at a crowded rural fair in Shaguna-Ghoragacha area of Nadia’s Kalyani in the small hours of Sunday.
The blast, around 12.30am, instantly killed homemaker Muskan Mondal who was buying a balloon for her child. She, her family and many others were at the fair enjoying a musical programme.
The vendor and two bystanders suffered severe injuries and were rushed to JNM Hospital. Mondal was declared dead in the same hospital.
The two injured were shifted to AIIMS-Kalyani and SSKM hospital in Calcutta.
The incident highlights administrative failures in regulating hazardous activities at public gatherings. Despite a 2022 Santipur tragedy that left two dead, authorities have not enforced a ban on hydrogen-filled balloons in crowded areas.
Police registered an unnatural death case but denied negligence.
“It’s difficult to monitor such balloon vendors in isolated spots across the state,” an officer said.
A state fire officer stressed that inflating balloons with hydrogen requires a fire
safety clearance, which is not granted in view of past explosions.
“The local police must prevent such installations,” the fire officer said.
A chemistry professor attached to a Nadia college explained that hydrogen, stored under high pressure, can explode upon contact with flame.
Fire officials noted that while international safety codes prohibit hydrogen for balloons, India still lacks a formal ban, letting vendors use risky chemical reactions to create hydrogen instead of obtaining the expensive helium for such balloons.