The gas leaked from the Chemistry lab on the ground floor and spread to classrooms on the upper floors of Kasturba Gandhi Degree & PG College for Women.
19 students are being treated in the hospital, eight of which have been admitted to the ICU, with two being critical. (Screengrab)
At least 36 students of Kasturba Gandhi Degree and PG College for Women at Marredpally in Hyderabad fell ill after a gas leak in the institute’s Chemistry lab on Friday, 18 November.
The students were shifted to Geetha Nursing Home in Secunderabad. The hospital said eight students, including two in a critical state, are in the Intensive Care Unit.
“Around 36 students were brought to the hospital with breathlessness, vomiting, and symptoms of fainting. Nineteen of them are being treated in the hospital, and eight are under intensive care. Two of them are in a critical state,” a hospital source said, adding that the students are being constantly monitored.
It is suspected that the excessive use of chemicals in the lab located on the ground floor of the building might have caused the leak. The gas spread to the second, third and fourth floors of the college where classrooms are situated. The situation is now under control.
The state disaster management team has launched an investigation into the incident.
The parents of the hospitalised students staged a protest outside the nursing home, demanding action against the college for negligence. They alleged that they learnt about the incident through social media.
The college administration declared Saturday a holiday after the incident. The Maredpally police have registered a case of negligence and are investigating.
According to a police officer, the incident occurred around 2 pm. “The chemistry lab is on the ground floor and we suspect that the gas leaked from the lab and spread upstairs where the students were studying. A forensic team has reached the college and is investigating,” sub-inspector V Soumya said.
The gas is yet to be identified.
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