Four RINL Employees Hospitalized After Gas Leak at Visakhapatnam Steel Plant

Four employees of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) were hospitalized following a carbon monoxide gas leak at Blast Furnace-1 of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant on the night of May 11, 2026. The incident occurred during the third shift due to a technical snag, causing the workers—identified as Susmith, Yadav, M. Venkateswara Rao, and Ramaraju—to lose consciousness after inhaling toxic fumes. Colleagues manually isolated the gas supply and evacuated the victims to the Visakha Steel General Hospital. While three employees were treated and discharged, one was transferred to a private super-speciality hospital for advanced respiratory care. Officials confirmed all individuals are in stable condition with no casualties reported. Preliminary investigations suggest pressure fluctuations in the gas cleaning plant circuit caused the leak. The event has reignited concerns regarding industrial safety protocols, with trade union leaders alleging that declining maintenance standards and manpower shortages contribute to frequent technical mishaps. They have demanded a high-level technical audit of the infrastructure. An internal committee has been constituted by RINL management to probe the exact cause of the incident, which was confined to the furnace’s internal gas recovery system.