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PGIMER sees 3rd fire in two months, this time near its laundry plant
As per the Chandigarh Fire Service, a distress call, informing about the blaze in the forest area, was received around 1.44pm through the emergency number 112.
Fire broke out near the laundry plant at Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, on Tuesday, making it the third blaze on campus in two months.
Fortunately, no casualty or property damage was reported in the incident. The cause of fire, however, remains uncertain.
As per the Chandigarh Fire Service, a distress call, informing about the blaze in the forest area, was received around 1.44pm through the emergency number 112.
On reaching the spot, the teams found fire at two spots – one at a garbage pile near the laundry plant and the second in the forest area. Due to the presence of dry grass, the flames quickly spread towards the Janta Colony but due to the fire department’s prompt action, the blaze could not spread further.
Sector 17 fire station officer JS Sandhu said four fire tenders -- three from Sector 11 and one from Sector 17, along with a mini fire tender from PGI, were pressed into service and the blaze was brought under control around 3.30pm.
PGI fire officer Rajesh Kumar said they rushed to the spot immediately after receiving information and controlled the situation.
The campus saw two fire incidents in October. The first incident had taken place on October 10, requiring the evacuation of 424 patients including pregnant women and newborn babies from Nehru Hospital. The second incident came in within a week, on October 16, wherein blaze was reported at the Advanced Eye Centre. In both cases, sparking in the UPS batteries were the cause of fire.
