20160321 India Fire burns 20 shanties down in Wazirabad
India Mar 21 2016 “Houses”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : 1 to 29 Injured : injured 0 or unknown
Fire burns 20 shanties down in Wazirabad
Updated: 2016-03-21-11:36
A fire broke out in Wazirabad on Sunday morning, destroying 20 shanties of a cluster of about 500 houses. It started as a spark from cooking, which caught on to inflammable scrap being stored there.
Over 1,500 people live in 500 shanties near Rohan Motors in Wazirabad in Sector 52. The residents mostly work as a labourers and scrap dealers. A pile of scrap, including paper and plastic, is usually stored in the slums.
“Around 11.15 am, a stock of scrap caught fire from an ember that probably flew from a nearby area where a family was cooking. The fire then engulfed the neighbouring shanties. Residents initially tried to douse the fire themselves, but when it got out of control, they called the fire brigade,” said I S Kashyap, fire safety officer. The call was made to Sector 29 fire station at 11.40 am. Six tenders, carrying three firemen and two safety officers each, were pressed into service.
The rescue operation by the fire department doused the fire by 12.40 pm. Sources said a large stock of flammable material including paper, plastics, even fuel like coal, kerosene and LPG cylinders, was stored in the open inside the slum. The damage could have been a lot more, as the shanties in the slum are clustered close by, but the fire was controlled in time to avert a big accident. Nobody was reported to be hurt in the incident.
Web Source: THE TIMES OF INDIA
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/gurgaon/Fire-burns-20-shanties-down-in-Wazirabad/articleshow/51490248.cms