Reports did state that there will be an investigation but the incident does highlight the need for all safety measures for vehicles, makeshift or otherwise, selling food.
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A vehicle used for selling fast food was gutted in a fire triggered by a cooking gas cylinder explosion near Airoli railway station in Thane recently, an official said, adding that nobody was injured, news reports said. The explosion occurred around 8.30 pm, reducing the vehicle to a charred shell within moments.
Reports cited eyewitnesses stating they heard a loud bang, followed by flames engulfing the vehicle. The intensity of the blast was such that the gas cylinder was blown apart, with its fragments scattered across the area.
A senior official from the Navi Mumbai fire brigade explained that there was an explosion in the gas cylinder in the makeshift vehicle serving as a Chinese food stall. The fire gutted the vehicle but was controlled before it could spread to nearby vehicles or structures. Reports did state that there will be an investigation, but the incident does highlight the need for all safety measures for vehicles, makeshift or otherwise, that sell food.
We now have a number of food trucks, too, with the truck culture catching up in the city. While that may add another dimension to the gastronomic landscape in the city, utmost care must be taken when it comes to cylinders and cooking apparatus in the truck. These food trucks must be fire compliant. Regular checks have to be done. We need surprise checks too and licences must be on the line, if there is non-adherence to safety protocols.
We have so many small eateries in the city, on the roads, some may be licensed, too, with a cylinder at times, placed outside. This may also be extremely close to where patrons are sitting, sometimes on stools on the pavement, eating their food. All that is needed is a thorough check and preventive, proactive action rather than reactive action.
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