Short circuit could be behind fire: Company

CALANGUTE: The cause of the fire at the plant could be due to a short circuit, said managing director of Berger-Becker, Rajesh Mehrotra. There were no casualties as the staff was evacuated immediately, he said.
"Around 2.30pm, a fire alarm went off and the first thing that we did was to shift people away from the site. There were 94 persons and we took them out. The second was to control the fire. But our small fire fighting team could not handle the situation, so we called the fire brigade and they arrived immediately," Mehrotra said.
"We are trying to ascertain the reason for the fire, but prima facie it looks like a short circuit," he said, adding that the loss is yet to be ascertained.
"It's difficult to say. I will be able to give details only when we make an assessment," Mehrotra said.
The fire broke out in the building where raw materials used to anufacture paints were stored, he said.
The other building where the paints were manufactured was not affected.
"We have been here since 2004. We have been manufacturing polyester-based paints which is used for coating the top and sides of buildings. We're a joint venture company with Berger-Becker. Becker is a Swedish company. We maintain all standards at the site," Mehrotra said.