Diwali: Fire and rescue services dept on high alert in Tamil Nadu

MADURAI: The fire and rescue services department is on high alert in southern Tamil Nadu to prevent fire accidents during Diwali. The 1,400 firefighters and officers in the 83 fire stations in the southern region have been asked to be ready round the clock.
Twenty-eight fire tenders have been stationed in places where the public gather in large numbers for the festival shopping, where fire accidents could happen. They include nine places in Kanyakumari district, six in Virudhunagar district, four places in Madurai, three each in Tirunelveli and Tuticorin districts, two in Tenkasi and one in Theni.
Department officials said they had received 809 applications for setting up temporary cracker outlets of which 672 were given no objection certificates. The remaining 137 were rejected due to lack of safety measures and violations.
Apart from the centralised helpline numbers 101 and 112, the department has also shared its district headquarters landline numbers for the public to dial in case of emergency -- Madurai: 0452-2335399, Theni: 04546-252699, Virudhunagar: 04562-243666, Ramanathapuram: 0467-221273, Sivagangai: 04575-240301, Tuticorin: 0461-2326501, Tirunelveli: 0462-2572099, Kanyakumari: 04652-276331 and Tenkasi: 04633-222166.