Chemical fumes burn kids who were looking for water

Diwali had started off with fun and games but soon turned into a painful nightmare for two thirsty kids who went in search of water but instead chanced upon a tank of a highly corrosive chemical carelessly left outside a textile mill in Dombivli The younger child mdash an 11yearold mdash sustained severe burns to his eyes and lips from the fumes as he opened the tap for a sip of what he thought was waterIt was 11yearold Prakash Verma whose eyes and lips were severely scalded by the fumes as he opened the tapAround 930 am on the morning of Diwali Prakash Verma 11 and Gaurav Salunkhe 14 were playing with their friends at the KalyanDombivli Municipal Corporation ground when they got thirsty They went over to Tirupati Processors the textile mill across the street to ask the watchman for a drink of water but he turned them awayGaurav Salunkhe points to the spot where the chemical tank was kept outside the textile millrsquos premises When midday visited the site the tank had been removed PicsSwarali PurohitldquoAfter playing we were thirsty and since the textile company was just across the street we went there hoping that the watchman would give us some water But he said he didnrsquot have anyrdquo said GauravAt the same time the younger boy Prakash spotted a tank with a tap right outside the company wall But when he opened the tap to slake his thirst all hell broke loose Instead of water the tank contained the extremely harmful sodium hydroxide Better known as caustic soda or lye the chemical is not only used in the manufacture of textiles and a number of other products but is also used as a drain cleaner mdash thatrsquos how corrosive it is It can quickly eat through human tissue causing severe chemical burns or even blindness in case of contact with the eyesHowever the children narrowly escaped the worst case scenario as they did not come in contact with the liquid itself but only the fumes which resulted in burns to the eyes and lips and lower body of Prakash Gaurav too got injured as he tried to help his friendldquoAs soon as Prakash opened the tap the fuming liquid started flowing When the vapours hit Prakashrsquos face he started screaming I rushed to close the tap and thatrsquos when my lips also got a little burntrdquo recalled GauravThe duorsquos remaining friends ran home to Trimurti Nagar to inform the boysrsquo families about the mishap after which the children were rushed to hospital Prakashrsquos father Kapil was at work in Vashi but he immediately rushed to his sonrsquos aid Due to the severity of Prakashrsquos burns he had to be shifted twice before he was finally admitted in KEM Hospital which could offer specialised treatment However the family was worried that treatment was going too slow and when the textile company got in touch with them offering to pay for the medical expenses they shifted the boy to Shivam Hospital Gaurav was also admitted to the hospital but was discharged on Friday once the doctors declared him stable said the 14yearoldrsquos mother RanjanaKids were carelessWhen midday visited the spot the tank and tap had been removed from the spot According to the company however the incident took place due to the childrenrsquos carelessnessParvan Pandey a representative of Tirupati Processors who has been visiting the families every other day to coordinate the treatment said ldquoThe children were careless they opened the tap accidentally while playing It was Diwali and the company was shut hence there was nobody to supervise themrdquo said PandeyHe added ldquoPrakashrsquos injuries also became severe because he was shifted from one hospital to another and couldnrsquot receive treatment on time Both the children are now stable and recuperatingrdquoDoctors from Shivam Hospital agreed that delay in treatment had escalated Prakashrsquos injuries adding that they would have to wait and see whether the accident would affect his vision ldquoWhile the injuries on the lower body of the patient are superficial those on his face are the real cause for concern Visiting doctors have said that there was retinal damage due to the accident But we will be able to get a confirmatory report about the extent of damage and whether it will affect the childrsquos eyesight only after 810 days On the other hand the other child was discharged after two days because he came earlier and his injuries werenrsquot as severerdquo said hospital administrator Sanjay JaiswalPolice sayThe company might not accept responsibility for the incident but the Manpada police have filed an FIR against the owner and the manager confirmed Senior Police Inspector G S Randive who said ldquoAs soon as we got to know about the incident we visited the site Since the incident took place because of the carelessly placed tank an FIR has been filed against the owner and the manager of the company under Sections 336 act endangering life or personal safety of others 337 causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others and 338 causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others of the IPCrdquo