Mumbai, Aug 17 (IANS): One labourer was killed and at least four others were injured in a reactor blast in a chemical factory in Boisar town of Palghar on Monday evening, the police said.

The incident occurred at around 7.30 pm in Nandolia Organic Chemicals Pvt. Ltd. (NOCPL) when certain chemicals were being mixed in the reactor.

The deafening blast was audible for several kms in the vicinity of the factory in Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) complex in the town with top officials including tehsildar Sunil Shinde, Palghar Maharashtra Pollution Control Board officer Manish Holkar and others rushing to the spot.

One worker Sandeep Kushwaha was declared dead while the injured Mohammed M. Altaf, 30, Dilip Gupta, 28, Umesh Kushwaha, 22, Pramodkumar Mishra, 35 have been admitted to Tunga Hospital in nearby Boisar.

The police, fire brigade and other agencies are investigating the detailed causes of the NOCPL plant blast which shook many homes in the vicinity, according to local eyewitnesses.