At least 40 people were injured after an explosion in the boiler triggered massive fire at a chemical factory in Gujarat’s Bharuch district on Wednesday.

The blast occurred at Yashashvi Rasayan Private Limited in Dahej Industrial Estate of Bharuch district.

People in villages near the plant have been taken to safer areas as the chemical fire is poisonous, a district official told news agency PTI.

“Around 35-40 workers received burn injuries after the boiler of an agro-chemical company exploded in the afternoon,” Bharuch collector MD Modia told PTI.

All the injured have been taken to hospitals in Bharuch, and efforts are on to control the fire, he added.

He further said that residents of Lakhi and Luvara villages located near the factory are being evacuated as a precautionary measure because of the presence of plants of poisonous chemicals near the affected factory.

Black smoke was seen billowing from the factory following the explosion.

Further details are awaited.