A 30‑ft‑high tank at the Om JVRD tyre oil plant erupted in flames at 5.30 pm on Monday, trapping six workers who were loading discarded tyres. Two of them succumbed to the heat, while four others and the tanker driver escaped injury.
Chief Fire Officer Prateek Srivastava arrived within twenty minutes, deploying three fire tenders from Mati station and later calling in three more. Foam was used to cool the adjacent tank, and the fire was brought under control after roughly forty minutes.
Owner Ramesh Chandra Gupta told police that workers had been caught carrying bidis into the storage area, suggesting the cigarettes might have ignited the blaze. The claim is under investigation, with authorities examining the site for evidence of ignition sources.
The factory, which has been operating for about five years, turns discarded tyres into tyre oil by heating them in oxygen‑free chambers. Its process has attracted scrutiny after a similar incident in 2024 that led to a temporary shutdown.
One of the workers who escaped, a 28‑year‑old from Jariha village, said the fire spread in seconds and that smoke was visible up to two kilometres away. He described the frantic effort to break the door and limpet himself from the tank.
Police are now coordinating with the State Disaster Management Authority to conduct a safety audit of all tyre‑recycling units in the district. A formal inquiry will be announced by the end of the week, and the plant’s operating licence is under review.