20120409 India FCI godown fire eats into tonnes of wheat, rice
India Apr 09 2012 “Warehouses”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : 0 or unknown Injured : injured 0 or unknown
FCI godown fire eats into tonnes of wheat, rice
Updated: 2012-04-09-03:55
KOCHI: A fire ravaged Food Corporation of India’s (FCI) godown in Willingdon Island on Sunday morning. Tonnes of loose wheat and rice stored in the godown were destroyed in the fire.
Fire and rescue officials are yet to ascertain the exact cause of the mishap. They suspect that an electrical short circuit might have caused it. The godown was locked from outside and there was a security guard on duty.
Fire and rescue personnel noticed the fire during routine patrol near FCI godown. “We saw smoke emanating from the roof of the godown around 9.30 am. Immediately an alert was sent to the base station and four fire tenders rushed to the spot,” said an official. Timely action of fire officials prevented the fire from spreading.
“Around five tonnes of wheat and rice were destroyed. It took nearly two hours douse the flames. FCI officials will evaluate the extent of damage; we are investigating how it started. The situation could have become much worse if it was not spotted on time,” officials said. “Though we do not suspect any sabotage, we are not ruling out any possibility,” officials said and added that the security guard, who was on duty, was unaware of the fire that was raging inside. He came to know about it only when the fire officials alerted him. A team of forensic officials will visit the spot to conduct a detailed examination of the spot,” said officials.
Web Source: THE TIMES OF INDIA