The timely intervention of Fire and Rescue Services units saved a furniture shop and a nearby sawmill from a massive fire outbreak at Vattoliparamba near Mukkom on Thursday morning. Though a few items worth ₹25,000 gutted in the incident, other valuables worth more than ₹1 crore were saved with the quick response of three rescue units from Mukkom fire station.
The incident took place around 4.20 a.m. It was a local lorry driver who first noticed the smoke and flames in the sawmill compound and immediately reported it to the Mukkom Fire and Rescue Services unit. Officials said the whole unit, including the sawmill, would have been gutted if they didn’t get the message on time.
“The rescue units could bring the flames under control in 30 minutes after reporting the incident. By the time local residents reached the spot, they had doused the fire,” said Manoj, a taxi driver. He said the fire first broke out from the sawmill, where a huge quantity of wooden pieces for furniture making had been kept.
Fire and Rescue Service officials said they were yet to ascertain the exact cause of the incident though there were unconfirmed reports about the possibility of electrical short-circuit. Since the industrial unit was close to the fire station, we could act very quickly, they said.