A fire broke out at a crockery store in Industrial Area, Phase 2, on Saturday morning around 10.30 am, resulting in the loss of goods worth lakhs.
The ground and first floor of the shop was gutted in fire. As per reports, the fire started due to a short circuit shortly after Bhagwati Crockery Store was opened and the switches were turned on. The shop contained a large quantity of crockery items stored in cardboard boxes, which fuelled the rapid spread of the fire.
Upon receiving the information, emergency response units quickly mobilised. A 18,000 litre water bowser from Sector-17 fire office, along with two 6,000 litre water tenders from Sector-32 and Ram Darbar fire offices, were dispatched to the scene.
Over 50 firefighters worked tirelessly to control the blaze, with the firefighting efforts requiring 30-35 rounds to finally bring the fire under control by 2 pm. However, smoke continued to emanate from the store until 6 pm.
The firefighting operation was conducted from three sides. Firefighters first accessed the roof from the front of the corner shop using ladders. Another team entered the shop to extinguish the fire using hose pipes. Despite their efforts, the fire continued to rage, prompting a team to break through the common wall from a vacant plot at the back and spray water using high-pressure hoses. This operation lasted approximately three and a half to four hours.
Sub-fire officer Gursharan Singh Sidhu, who was present at the scene, noted that smoke can sometimes persist for up to two days in such fires. An investigation is ongoing to determine the exact cause and extent of the damage. A fire officer explained that most short-circuit incidents are caused by loose wiring and overloading due to excessive connections in shops.
