Overview
- MRPL reported that a cold separator in the Coker Hydrotreater unit ruptured under high pressure around noon on September 30, causing a rapid release of material and a fire that sent a loud boom across Mangaluru.
- Onsite and external fire teams from MRPL, the New Mangalore Port Authority and Karnataka Fire and Emergency Services isolated the affected battery limits and brought the fire under control by mid‑afternoon while cooling operations continued.
- One worker, identified as Rajesh Baptist, suffered serious burn injuries to about 35% of his body and was treated in the ICU at Srinivasa Hospital; six to eight other people received minor treatment or outpatient care.
- The blast rattled windows and was felt across nearby localities and at Mangaluru International Airport, prompting visual inspections of airport systems and precautionary alerts to local hospitals and district authorities.
- Authorities have launched a formal technical probe to find the root cause of the cold separator failure in the high‑pressure hydrotreater unit and to assess any wider safety or operational implications for MRPL’s Phase‑III complex.