Businessman dies from boiling water explosion in Ulu Tiram

The scene at the mushroom cultivation centre following the gas explosion.

JOHOR BARU: A 52-year-old businessman died from a gas explosion while trying to boil water to steam his mushrooms in Ulu Tiram here.

Seri Alam acting OCPD Deputy Supt Shahrulanuar Mushaddat Abdullah Sani said the victim, Ong Kim Hin, who owns a mushroom cultivation centre at a mall, was with an employee when the incident took place at around 11.40am on Tuesday (Dec 15).

“They had been installing gas cylinders in a steam generator and when Ong turned on the knob, the gas cylinder in front of him exploded.

“The impact threw him to the ground and he sustained severe injuries to the face and head.

“He was pronounced dead at the scene, ” he said, adding that the case was classified as sudden death report.

The victim’s body was sent to Hospital Sultan Ismail for a post-mortem.

DSP Shahrulanuar Mushaddat added that teams from the Fire and Rescue Department and the Hazardous Materials Unit (Hazmat) were also present at the scene for follow-up investigations.

Meanwhile, a 30-year-old woman in Taman Bukit Indah 2 was rushed to the Columbia Specialist Hospital after her kitchen stove burst into flames due to a gas leak.

Iskandar Puteri Fire and Rescue Department operation commander Mohd Anuar Amdzah said the incident took place at around 12.30pm Tuesday, when the victim and two other tenants were preparing food.

“Suddenly, there was a flash and flames ensued, probably caused by a leaking gas hose.

“The fire didn’t spread to other parts of the kitchen, but the victim did receive burns on her hands and legs, ” he said.

The firefighters also inspected the unit to ensure that there were no more gas leaks before leaving the scene, he added.