A major fire broke out in a textile manufacturing unit, Shreyans Fabrics, at Kailash Nagar, Sherpur, here, on Wednesday night. Workers were reportedly inside the unit when the fire started. They managed to save their lives. Initially, the workers also tried to douse the flames but in vain.
The multi-storey unit houses machinery and stock, both raw and finished, in huge quantity, which gutted in the fire. Workers managed to shift some of the stock to a safe place. Even huge stock kept in the basement of the factory was also reduced to ashes.
The exact loss could not be ascertained as of now.
Fire officer Aatish Rai, who was leading the operation, said the blaze started from the upper floor, which engulfed the entire unit within an hour. When factory employees and the owner failed to control the flames, they alerted the fire brigade. Fire tenders reached the spot within a few minutes, around 12.10 am.
“Since the entire unit was under flames and even the main entrance was blocked, firemen had to use ladder to reach the first floor. Grills of the basement were also broken to control the situation. As many as 175 fire tenders were used to control the situation in 18 hours of continuous operation,” Aatish said.
Fire officials said reason of the fire could not be established, though a short-circuit was suspected to be the cause.
Many other factories located in Kailash Nagar, especially those situated near the unit, also faced the risk of being affected by the fire. However, the blaze was controlled by the firemen in time.
Sources said the factory had fire safety arrangements and the workers also used fire extinguishers to douse the flames. Since the fire turned intense in no time, the workers could not control it and it spread to the entire unit.
Hand-held thermal
imaging cameras used
The firefighters brought hand-held hi-tech thermal imaging cameras to the spot. The cameras can see through smoke even in darkness and help locate trapped persons in the fire. The water-resistant cameras has a range of 30 metres. It can monitor the blaze and differentiate areas with high or low heat.
