A 38-year-old man died after an explosion took place inside an old fuel tank that he was welding on Maniktala Main Road on Thursday.
The fuel tank had been sold off to a scrap dealer.
Police said Paras Roy, 38, was declared dead at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
He was a resident of Bihar, said the police.
The explosion took place around 8.35am when Roy, who a scrap dealer had engaged, was welding the tank along 120A Maniktala Main Road.
A resident said he heard a “loud explosion” and on visiting the explosion site saw an injured Roy lying motionless.
“The man had received serious injuries,” said the resident.
Roy had received injuries in his head, face and hands, the police said.
A police officer who visited the spot said it was surprising how the explosion happened inside the tank which had no fuel inside it.
“It is a normal practice that such underground tanks used in fuel pumps are sold off to scrap dealers when they get old and are no longer usable. The tank had two openings and thus it was unlikely that any gas would get trapped in it,” said the officer.
The remains of the tank would undergo forensic examination to ascertain the cause of the accident, the police said.
Roy’s body has been sent for post-mortem to ascertain the exact cause of his death.
A senior police officer said it was an “unfortunate incident” but luckily there were no other injuries or casualties in the explosion that was reported on a busy Maniktala Main Road that remains crowded with vehicles and pedestrians on any weekday.