Jamshedpur Fire Mishap: 18 fire tenders take 17 hours to douse flames, DC orders probe

Tyres worth Rs 12 cr gutted in major fire near NH33

Short circuit led to fire in tyre godown situated in Anand Vihar Colony

Mail News Service

Jamshedpur, May 29: Tyres worth Rs 12 crore were burnt to ashes in a major fire that broke out in a locked godown near Anand Vihar Colony between Pardih and Dimna Chowk on Sunday. No casualty was however reported in the incident.

The fire broke out around 2 am and was doused after over 17 hours of effort by firemen. As many as 18 fire tenders were pressed into service to control the flames that engulfed around 6500 new and old tyres kept in the godown belonging to one Mahendra Yadav of Sidhgora.

By evening, rain turned out to be a major help to the firemen. Rainwater accumulated inside the godown, thus completely dousing the fire.

East Singhbhum Deputy Commissioner Vijaya Jadhav, SDO Sandeep Meena, SP City K Vijay Kumar and many other district administration officials reached the mishap site and expedited the fire control exercise. After inspecting the godown building from various angles, the DC ordered officials to demolish a part of its wall to prevent blast caused by hot air and smoke. Soil, sand and stone chips were also filled inside the godown to slow down the fire.

Taking serious view of the fact that the tyre godown is situated in a densely populated residential area, the DC said a probe would be conducted in this connection. “It should be found out as to how was the godown owner permitted to run a godown in a residential area,” she said.

Jadhav said the electricity connection to the godown was disconnected earlier and reconnected on Saturday. “It is very much possible that the fire was caused by a short circuit. Still a probe would be conducted and fire audit would be carried out,” she said.

District administration called in fire tenders from Ranchi, Ghatsila, Jadugora, Chandil and Adityapur to the fire site. Fire tenders from Tata Steel, Tata Motors and Tata Powers were also pressed into service. Several water tankers were also called for help.

The DC appealed to people to inform the district administration about godowns or warehouses situated close to residential areas and containing flammable substances. Stern action would be taken against the guilty, she said.

Olidih and MGM police teams had reached the scene on getting information about the fire. Traffic on the National Highway 33 was affected partially as the fire mishap site is closely situated. Abhilasha Apartment and Dharmkanta are situated near the godown. The apartment residents grew apprehensive about their safety after the incident.

According to Mithilesh Kumar Singh, officer in-charge of MGM PS, “We got information about the fire around 2 am. We soon informed fire department and rushed to the scene.”