The tank, with a capacity of 40,000 cubic metres, was storing a mixture of gases that included carbon monoxide and methane. It exploded and caught fire at around 7.40pm on Wednesday. Police managed to seal off the area and evacuated all the factory employees with no loss of life. The blaze could be seen from at least 15km away.

The tank is used to store gas that is generated when coals are heated to make coke. The gas is temporarily stored in the tank and then reused as fuel for power generation and for other purposes.

The authorities are currently investigating the site to ascertain the cause of the blaze and, while they have yet to discover the cause of the explosion, they believe that solidified oil which is applied to the space between the interior of the tank and the hydraulically powered floating cap of the tank, caught fire after the gas exploded inside the tank.