Fire at Karol Bagh shoe market, 39 fire tenders rushed

NEW DELHI: A huge fire broke out at many shops in a shoe market in central Delhi's Karol Bagh area early Sunday morning, which was doused in around five hours, a senior fire service official said.

The blaze was extinguished around 9 am while the cooling operations continued, he said. "A serious fire call was received from a shoe market in Gaffar, Karol Bagh, at 4.16 am and 39 fire tenders were rushed to the site," Delhi Fire Service (DFS) Director Atul Garg said.

Nobody was trapped or received any injuries, he said, adding the cause of fire is not known yet. The Director of DFS said none of the shops which caught fire had No Objection Certificate from the fire department.

The fire department said buildings in the shoe market usually has their shops on ground floors while the owners either store, repair or sale in their godowns which are upstairs.

Elaborating on the challenges faced by the fire-fighters during the operation, Garg said the area where the fire incident took place was a narrow lane which was mainly congested.

"Lots of hanging wires were present at market area which is dangerous and causes inconvenience too. There was a shortage of water resources used for dousing fire. The construction of the building is weak, so the structures have already developed cracks," he added.