Nagpur: Readymade furniture, wood and imported ply worth Rs200 crore were destroyed in a major fire at Spacewood — one of India’s leading furniture manufacturing units — situated in Hingna MIDC area on Tuesday evening.
Nobody was injured or trapped in the fire, said chief fire officer Rajendra Uchake, adding, the reason behind the incident is yet to be ascertained. “At least 14 fire tenders from Hingna MIDC, including eight from Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s fire and emergency department, struggled to douse the fire which broke out at around 4.30pm,” Uchake told TOI. Short circuit is suspected to have triggered the blaze.
A company official told TOI that the fire originated from the factory’s painting section. Before anyone could take action, the fire took a devastating turn and engulfed the other units inside the 21-acre premises, said the official.
With hundreds of workers inside the factory, the management acted swiftly and evacuated them safely, the official said. “None of the employees was injured due to the fire,” the official claimed.
While some employees tried to douse the fire, there were others who switched off the power supply but in vain. In no time, the fire took a devastating turn. Huge stocks of wood, foam and other inflammable material added fuel to the fire, said the fire official.
Raw material and machinery, mostly imported, too were completely damaged, said the official.
Fire tenders from Hingna MIDC were the first to reach the spot. Due to the gravity of the situation,
NMC’s fire department was pressed into service. Soon, fire tenders from Mihan, Wadi and Ambajhari Ordnance Factory too joined in.
Four units of the factory were destroyed. The company has a pump house as well as a water tank for firefighting. The equipment could not be used because it was kept in the backyard of the factory, said Uchake.
The fire was restricted to the company’s manufacturing unit, said the company official, adding, the firefighting operation kept the Spacewood mall, where readymade furniture is on display, safe.
Uchake ruled out any possibility of the fire spreading to the adjoining units due to the firm’s concrete compound wall. It will prevent fire from spreading outside the unit, he said.
The fire spread panic among those in the vicinity. Adjoining units were shut immediately before evacuating their employees to avert any untoward incident. Firefighting operations were under way at the time of going to the press.
City police too had a tough time. The entire area was cordoned off to enable dousing of the fire. Hundreds of curious onlookers gathered at the spot. Traffic was disrupted for some time.
UP IN FLAMES
* Suspected short circuit triggered fire at 4.30pm on Tuesday
* Readymade furniture, wood and imported ply worth Rs200 crore ruined
* Employees’ attempts to douse flames in vain
* 14 fire tenders pressed into service
* Employees evacuated safely
* Fire fighting equipment kept in backyard didn’t come handy