FAISALABAD: A boiler explosion at a textile mill on Sargodha Road on Thursday night left three labourers dead and 13 burnt.

The district officer (environment) on Friday sealed the three boilers of the mill and the police took into custody some employees for interrogation.

A Rescue 1122 team was informed that a boiler of Dawood Export had exploded, leaving more than 15 workers injured. Later, Zahoor and Sohail were found dead on the spot. The rescue employees shifted the injured to Allied Hospital.

The injured were identified as Ishaq, 45, Abdul Ghafoor, 40, Kamran, 30, Sajjad, 35, Sarfraz, 50, Sharafat, 40, Ghulam Rasool, 50, Boota, 25, Usman, 20, Waqas Inayat, 18, Abdul Sattar, 30, Rooban Bashir, 25, and Dildar, 45.

The rescue team provided first-aid to another worker, Asif Aslam, 30.

The hospital administration had to treat the victims at the ENT ward as all the beds of the emergency were already occupied. They were shifted to the burn unit on Friday.

One of the rescuers figured out that the boiler had exploded owing to extra pressure.

Allied Hospital Director Emergency Dr Iftikhar Ahmed said three patients had passed away -- two on Thursday night and one on Friday. The condition of eight was serious, he said. He claimed that the victims were initially treated at the ENT ward where they had been given proper treatment.

He said three doctors were looking after the victims efficiently at the burn unit and all the required medicines had been provided to them.

DO (Environment) Mohammad Nawaz told Dawn a report against the general manager of the mill, Mahmood Husain, and boiler engineer Sajjad had been submitted to the Nishatabad police for registration of a case. Moaz Maroof, the enforcement inspector of the environment department, was the applicant in the case, he added.

He said all the boilers of the mill had been seized because of violation of safety measures. These could be reactivated after issuance of certificates by the boiler inspector, Rescue 1122 and civil defence. And finally the DCO would allow the mill to become operational.

DCO Noorul Ameen Mengal said a committee had been constituted to ascertain the cause of the incident. It would submit recommendations within 24 hours as how to avoid such eventuality in future.

Besides, he said, cases of the deceased workers would be sent to the Workers Welfare Board for death grant. He said the police had sealed the factory and arrested some employees.

A police officer said some employees of the mill had been taken into custody and legal opinion would be sought to bring criminal charges against the owners who had apparently violated the safety measures.