Bengaluru sizzles with 15 fires every day this year

BENGALURU: The state capital saw 1,000 incidents of fire from January 1 till March 10 (Friday). On average, the city has recorded about 15 fire accidents daily, according to data shared by the fire brigade.
The incidence of fire mishaps this year has been higher than the last, when about 800 incidents were reported in the first three months. On Friday alone, about 12 fire accidents were reported till evening. Fire officers said this is not unusual in Bengaluru during summer. Major fires are caused by dry ground grass and garbage being set ablaze. Last year, the city reported 2,033 incidents in total. In the past 11 years, the highest number of fires - 3,363 - was in 2019 and the lowest - 1,543 - in 2013.
A senior fire officer said the majority of fires are minor. Of the 12 incidents reported on Friday, eight were due to ground grass fire. This is usually man-made as people throw cigarette butts without putting them off, or set fire to garbage littered around the grass, he explained.
Fire alerts are slightly higher in the summer because of the soaring temperature. The fire teams are fully engaged in firefighting from January to April, after which the daily calls to the fire control room drop down to 2-3.
He said that putting out building fires caused by short circuits is a major task. Every year, the city sees 5-10 major fires requiring more than three hours to be doused. On Thursday, one such incident was reported around midnight when a waste-collection centre with plastic bottles went up in flames. Eight fire tenders went to the spot and the operation went on till the morning hours, he said.
People have to take precautions by not carelessly throwing cigarettes, littering garbage, and keeping their wiring intact, he added.