A toxic gas named Styrene reportedly leaked from LG Polymers India Pvt Ltd, a multinational company in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, in the wee hours of Thursday. At the time of writing this piece, seven deaths, including of a child, were reported.

As per most reports, as many as 200 people have been admitted to different hospitals in the city and surrounding villages.

Journalist Dhanya Rajendra has quoted the DGP as saying that two people died in accidents while escaping. "He says gas is not lethal as such and hopefully most people can be discharged soon. Problem is for those people who inhaled a large quantity of the gas," she writes.

As soon as the residents of RR Venkatapuram, a village near Vizag, inhaled the dangerous gas, they reported a burning sensation in their eyes and skin. Some of them had difficulty in breathing. Many simply collapsed while rushing out of their homes due to suffocation. Children and old people have been found to be especially vulnerable to symptoms.

The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation has requested the residents of the city not to come out of houses and to take safety precautions.

Visuals being telecast by TV channels are heart-breaking. "Mobile videos taken by rescuers show nearly 10 people lying on the ground. It's not clear whether they were unconscious or the casualties would rise," reports NDTV.