20200219 Lucknow: 6-hour inferno at Aishbagh plywood unit, 3 workers hurt
India Feb 19 2020 “Building” “Factories”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : 1 to 29 Injured : injured 1 to 9
Lucknow: 6-hour inferno at Aishbagh plywood unit, 3 workers hurt
Updated: 2020–02–20
LUCKNOW: Three workers suffered serious burns and one is reported missing as a major fire broke out at a plywood factory in densely-populated Aishbagh on Wednesday. It took five fire tenders over six hours to tame the blaze. Firemen and police are yet to ascertain the cause of fire.
Locals said the fire started around 1.15pm when 25 people were working in the factory. Trapped in the inferno, they broke windows and scaled walls to escape. Three workers — Mithlesh (22), Virendra Kumar (20) and Sonu (18) — received burns on the head, hands and legs and were rushed to civil hospital, police said. Later in the evening, workers said a colleague who was sleeping inside the factory was still untraced. Police said they were scouring the debris.
The leaping flames melted the rooftop water tanks, reduced to cinders a shanty near the factory and threatened to engulf an adjacent unit manufacturing acid along with more than three dozen houses. Residents panicked and dialled 112 but firemen reached around 1.45pm. Although the flames were tamed after a six-hour combat, stacks of plywood were still smouldering till late in the night.
Chief fire officer Vijay Kumar Singh said the fire tenders made multiple rounds to refill water. “The factory lacked adequate firefighting equipment. The cause of the blaze will be ascertained.”
The factory is owned by an 80-year-old businessman, Dharam Veer Gulati, a resident of Motinagar, but he refused to speak to media.
Bazarkhala SHO Vijendar Singh said they had put diversions to block traffic movement near the spot. “There must always be enough space for ambulances and fire tenders,” he added.
Web Source: The times of India