Fire breaks out at shop, no casualty

A fire broke out in a leading departmental store located on the Sriganganagar-Padampur road last evening, causing a loss worth lakhs of rupees. There was no casualty in the incident.

On receiving information, the Fire Department rushed three fire tenders to the spot to control the blaze. It took about two hours for the fire brigade personnel to control the fire. People who had gathered at the site helped in the firefighting operation.

While battling the blaze, the store owner suffered minor burns.

Preliminary investigation revealed that a stall of firecrackers was set up in front of the store. Though the exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, it is being said that it broke out due to some sparks falling on firecrackers. The sparks reportedly were caused by a short circuit in electrical fittings. Power supply to the area was snapped.

As people gathered at the spot in large numbers gathered, the road in front of the store was blocked. Fire tenders had to face difficulty in reaching the site as shopkeepers had stacked goods on the road in view of Diwali.

Fire staff said grocery items kept inside the departmental store also got damaged due to water sprayed to extinguish the blaze. Store furniture was also damaged in the incident.