Five Workers Die After Carbon Monoxide Exposure in Shillong Well

Shillong: Five workers died Friday inside a well in the Lapalang neighborhood of Shillong. A toxic gas buildup killed them. The men were finishing up construction work at the site when tragedy struck. They lowered a water pump into the 33-foot hole to clear out water. That pump trapped them.

The machine released carbon monoxide in the tight space. The victims lost consciousness almost instantly. Three Khasi workers and two Nepali laborers perished in the well. Fire and Emergency Services rescue crews recovered the bodies later that day.

Water Resources Department official Larrypor Roy Nongbri confirmed the pump caused the deaths. He explained that fuel-powered gear creates a death trap in deep, enclosed areas with poor airflow. The gas hits fast. Nongbri noted that "exposure to high concentrations of the gas can prove fatal within 30 seconds as it rapidly displaces oxygen in the body, leaving victims with little or no opportunity to escape."