AT least five people have been killed and 1,000 hospitalized after a gas leak at a chemicals plant on the east coast of India, authorities said Thursday, warning the death toll would climb.

The gas leaked out of two 5,000-ton tanks that had been unattended due to India’s coronavirus lockdown in place since late March, according to a local police officer.

Footage on Indian television channels showed people, including women and children, lying in the streets of Visakhapatnam, an industrial port city in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

“We can confirm at least five deaths right now. More will be confirmed later,” said Swaroop Rani, an assistant police commissioner in Visakhapatnam.

B K Naik, district hospitals coordinator, said that at least 1,000 people had been sent to different hospitals, and that it was feared many others may be unconscious in their homes.

The plant operated by LG Polymers is located on the outskirts of Visakhapatnam. The city and the surrounding area are home to around 5 million people.

The incident led to panic among locals in a radius of three kilometers around the plant.(SD-Agencies)