Panchkula: Bushfire spreads to Sector-23 dumping yard

The fire initially broke out in the six acre vacant land of HSVP and soon the flames had engulfed four more acres; After some time the fire had spread to the dumping ground; Fire fighters had a tough time controlling the blaze due to presence of excess plastic

A fire that broke out on the vacant land of Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) spread to the Sector 23 dumping ground in Industrial Area, Phase 1, on Wednesday.

This is the second fire incident at the dump since two months. (HT photo)

This is the second fire incident at the dump in the past two months. Previously, the site used by the Panchkula municipal corporation (MC) to dump horticulture waste had caught fire on April 14.

The fire initially broke out in an area of six acres and soon engulfed four more acres. After some time, the adjoining dumping ground caught fire. The thick black smoke and foul smell from the burning plastic waste caused breathing trouble for local residents. After receiving information about the incident, fire department rushed its tenders. After extinguishing the fire on the HSVP land, fire officials tended to the burning dump. Fire tenders from Chandigarh, Dera Bassi, Kalka and Barwala were also requested.

Fire fighters had a tough time controlling the blaze due to presence of excess plastic.

MC chief Sachin Gupta is monitoring the entire incident himself. MC deputy commissioner Apoorva Chaudhary said, “Fire tenders will be stationed at the dumping ground even as it is still smouldering.” The civic body has constituted a committee to look into the cause of the fire.

Senior MC officials said that further bio-mining work of legacy waste would be stopped till monsoon so that re-ignition, owing to presence of methane gas, could be avoided at the dump.