20160203 India Fire resurfaces in new parts of Deonar dump, help sought from IIT team
India Feb 03 2016 “Other”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : 0 or unknown Injured : injured 0 or unknown
Fire resurfaces in new parts of Deonar dump, help sought from IIT team
Updated: 2016-02-03-22:54
Fire broke out at a few new spots in the Deonar dumping ground on Wednesday, a day after the BMC claimed the blaze was ‘under control’. In a desperate attempt to contain the emission of methane gas at the dump, which is believed to be stoking the dying fire, help has been sought from IIT graduates with expertise in solid waste management. Some residents are even contemplating moving out of the area for a while.
A team of IITians, who work in a firm incubated at IIT-Bombay’s Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE), sent a detailed proposal to Samajwadi corporator Rais Shaikh, who had sought their suggestions to stop the emission. Indra Kant Jha, founder of Sweep Enviro, the IIT-B incubated firm, said it has given some solutions to the corporator which need to be implemented soon. “The IIT team advised an immediate contour survey of the landfill, following which they will design a gas well with perforated pipes which will act like an escape route for methane gas,” said Shaikh.
Thick smoke was seen around the dump even on Wednesday. Those living near the garbage dump are particularly worried and some are even contemplating leaving town for a bit, till the fumes die down. A few hundred Chembur residents staged a peaceful march from RK studios to Gandhi Maidan early on Wednesday morning, dressed in black with masks across their faces, demanding that the dumping ground be shut. “We really don’t know what we are breathing in,” said Priya Fonseca, a resident of Sterling Apartments, whose husband participated in the march. “Are the authorities going to wait for someone to die before they do anything?” she asked.
The fire was spotted at a few places in the dumping ground which were earlier unaffected, creating panic. While officials acted promptly to control it, they admitted that possibility of the fire spreading to other parts couldn’t be ruled out. “The smoke has been doused considerably and its severity reduced. The fire was at least 20 feet deep so spraying water only on the top of the garbage mounds was a superficial exercise. We excavated the garbage using proclain machines and then sprayed water,” said chief fire officer P Rahangdale. Around 50 firemen and fire officials, six water tankers and six engines were at the ground.
The BMC also obtained police permission to use drones at the dumping ground to assess the situation on Thursday, even as civic officials started spraying magnesium chloride powder over the mounds of garbage at the dump, following a suggestion from NEERI.
Web Source: TIMES OF INDIA
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Fire-resurfaces-in-new-parts-of-Deonar-dump-help-sought-from-IIT-team/articleshow/50841171.cms