Fire wrecks a part of GDA office, no records damaged

GHAZIABAD: A fire damaged a portion of the first floor of the GDA office building on Tuesday. No injuries were reported yet there was serious damage to property. Fire officers doused the flames after around two hours.

Officials of the GDA confirmed that no records or files were harmed in the fire. The fire was reported at 9.05am before any officials had arrived for the day's work. Five fire tenders were rushed to the site to contain the blaze. "An electrical short circuit on the first-floor lobby could be the cause of the fire. The first floor was completely engulfed in smoke and the glass window had to be smashed open to release it," said a fire official. According to GDA officials, the fire was first noticed by a sweeper on duty on the first floor. The sweeper reportedly has witnessed the manner in which sparks flew out from the short-circuit resulting in the fire.

Office chamber of the vice-chairman, Kanchan Verma, the main lobby on the first floor and the conference room were the parts that sustained most damage. "Furniture on the first-floor was charred but there was no damage to any official record or files. The chamber of the vice-chairman had been lying vacant. The exact quantum of loss in terms of money is yet to be determined," GDA secretary Ravindra Godbole told TOI.