On Monday night (February 2), a thrilling accident occurred at a residential building in Mumbai's Colaba district, India. A deliveryman carrying multiple inflated balloons entered an elevator, when the balloons suddenly exploded, instantly igniting flames and causing injuries to a 21-year-old female university student and the deliveryman inside the elevator. Fortunately, both were sent to hospital and are now out of life-threatening danger.
According to police records, the incident happened at around 10:30 p.m. that night. At the time, there were three people in the elevator: 32-year-old balloon deliveryman Raju Kumar Mahato, a male passenger, and 21-year-old female university student Himani Tapriya.
CCTV footage shows Tapriya entering the elevator first, followed by Mahato pushing a cart loaded with more than 10 inflated balloons. Due to the large volume of the balloons, they reportedly made slight contact with the elevator door during the process. Soon after, before the elevator doors had fully closed, the plastic bag containing the balloons suddenly caught fire and exploded, instantly engulfing the elevator in flames.
Tapriya later recalled that the explosion was completely without warning, and the severe pain left her momentarily unable to react. She suffered serious burns to her arms, neck, and abdomen in the accident. She said that she had just arrived in Mumbai that night and was preparing to visit relatives in the building, not expecting such an incident to happen within just a few seconds.
Mahato was also affected by the flames in the accident, but is in stable condition after being rushed to the hospital. As for the other male passenger in the elevator, he was farther away at the time and was not visibly harmed.
After investigation, the police pointed out that the balloons involved were suspected to be filled with highly flammable hydrogen, and even a tiny spark or static electricity could have triggered the explosion. The local government had already issued several warnings, strictly prohibiting the transport of hydrogen-filled balloons in enclosed spaces such as elevators.
The Colaba police have invoked Section 125 (negligence offense) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (Indian Penal Code) and have issued a notice as well as opened an investigation against the balloon store owner, T K Jaiswal. Police noted that the store owner failed to provide the deliveryman with necessary safety instructions and protective equipment, which was one of the main causes of the accident.
In her complaint, Tapriya also accused the deliveryman's employer of negligence and recklessness that led to the incident. The case is currently under further investigation.