Patna: Four construction workers died after inhaling toxic gas inside a septic tank in Gopalganj district on Saturday, while another man fell unconscious and was hospitalised while trying to rescue them. The incident occurred at Sawanhi Jagdish village under Gopalpur police station area when workers entered an under construction septic tank to remove centering material.According to police, one worker first entered the tank but did not come out. Three others then went into the tank one after another to rescue him. They too collapsed inside after inhaling poisonous gas. The deceased were identified as Bunty Baitha alias Rakesh Baitha (26), Javed Alam alias Tipu Alam (31), Umesh Yadav (35) and Shabbe Alam (18).Hathua SDPO Anand Mohan Gupta said the septic tank was part of a house being built by Reshma Khatoon. Following her husband’s death, her father had given her land on which she was constructing the house. “The toilet and septic tank were under construction and water had accumulated inside the tank,” Gupta said.Workers Javed Alam alias Tipu Alam and Shabbe Alam initially entered the tank to remove the centering. Soon after, they inhaled toxic gas and began losing consciousness, prompting cries for help.Hearing the alarm, nearby worker Manirul Haq alerted others. Bunty Baitha and Umesh Yadav then entered the tank without any safety equipment in an attempt to rescue the two men. They too collapsed. Another worker, Seraj Khan, subsequently entered the tank to rescue the others but also lost consciousness after inhaling the toxic gas.Local residents rushed to the spot and launched a rescue operation. After considerable effort, they pulled all five men out and took them to hospital. Doctors declared four workers dead on arrival, while Seraj Khan was admitted for treatment.Police teams from Shripur, Phulwaria and Kuchaikote police stations, along with administrative officials, reached the village after the incident. The bodies were sent to Gopalganj Sadar Hospital for post-mortem.
