Four persons were killed and five others were injured in a powerful blast at a soap factory, which was being operated inside a house in front of Satyakam School in Lohia Nagar police station area, early Tuesday morning.

The soap factory belongs to Alok Gupta and Gaurav Gupta, residents of Shastri Nagar in the Medical police station area. The factory was being run by taking Sanjay Gupta’s house on rent. There was a massive explosion in the factory reported on Tuesday morning, due to which the workers present were trapped under the debris. Four of them succumbed to injuries while five were said to be critically injured.

Top officials, including the SSP and the DM, reached the spot and rushed those injured to a hospital. They also called an NDRF team to rescue those trapped under the debris. Reports said that when the rescue team was removing the debris, another blast occurred, but no one was injured in it. The police cordoned off the area soon afterwards.

SSP Rohit Singh Sajwan said according to the reports received so far, either the boiler in the soap factory exploded or some chemical triggered the blast.

District Magistrate Deepak Meena said that five people were injured in the incident and four died.

“No one has come forward so far yet to identify the deceased. It seems that the deceased were factory workers. Soap-making material and stock of soap were found from the spot. It was a two-storey building under Lohia Nagar police station,” the police said.

Meanwhile, taking cognisance of the incident, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath extended condolences to the kin of the deceased and directed the district administration to provide proper treatment to those injured. The CM also directed the district administration officials to expedite the relief work.

In another incident, two people died in Shamli after being struck by lightning. Said to be labourers, they were working in their field when lightning struck them.

The district administration officials announced to provide compensation to the family members of the deceased. Reports said that Kasim (35) and Arshad (18) of Mohalla Afghan in Kairana area of Shamli were working in their field when it started pouring. Struck by lightning all of a sudden, both died on the spot.