Fire rips through multi-storey building near InfoPark at Kakkanad

Three persons, including a firefighter, sustain injuries; initial assessment points to short-circuit as the cause for the blaze

May 13, 2023 11:30 pm | Updated 11:31 pm IST - KOCHI

Fire and rescue services personnel trying to douse the blaze at a building at Kakkanad on Saturday.

Fire and rescue services personnel trying to douse the blaze at a building at Kakkanad on Saturday. | Photo Credit: THULASI KAKKAT

Three persons, including a firefighter, sustained injuries, albeit minor ones, after a major fire broke out at a multi-storey commercial building at the Kinfra Export Promotion Industrial Park, near InfoPark, at Kakkanad on Saturday evening.

As per initial assessment, short circuit caused the fire at the multi-storey building, GEO Info Park, which is house to several IT companies.

Around 15 fire tenders from various fire stations and institutions rushed to the spot. It took hours to bring the fire under control. District Collector N.S.K. Umesh said a probe would be ordered into the incident.

Reportedly, the fire initially broke out in a bathroom on the ground floor before it spread to the rest of the building leaving thick smoke billowing out of it.

According to initial estimates, the loss caused by the fire runs into crores.

Fire force officials found it hard to break into the building, and initially they operated from outside. There was confusion whether anyone was trapped inside, and alerts were sent out through organisations of IT employees asking to share information about employees working in the park.

Officials at the District Disaster Management Authority said they were seized of the situation. Among the three injured, the firefighter suffered burn injuries and underwent treatment at a nearby private hospital. Two others were injured by glass shards as they smashed a window to escape from the smoke.

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