Two-storey building, adjoining shop gutted in fire at Sadar Bazar

A three-storey building and an adjoining shop were gutted in a major fire at Sadar Bazar on Wednesday evening as firefighting operations continued beyond 11pm, at the time of filing of the report

A three-storey building and an adjoining shop were gutted in a major fire at Sadar Bazar on Wednesday evening as firefighting operations continued beyond 11pm, at the time of filing of the report. However, no injuries were reported in the incident.

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According to fire department officials, they received a call about the fire at 6.43pm and more than 20 fire tenders deployed to contain the fire. The cause of the fire was yet to be determined, said officials.

The fire broke out in a three-floor hardware store, located at the point where the Basai Road starts. Initially, one fire tender was sent. However, upon arrival, fire department officials called for more vehicles due to the intensity of the blaze. “The entire three-floor hardware store is gutted. The fire broke out when shopkeepers and staff were present inside. However, they all managed to escape unharmed. We are yet to ascertain the cause of the fire. It is likely to have been caused by a short circuit,” said a fire department official at the spot.

The official cited above also said that the hardware store had highly flammable objects, due to which the intensity of the fire continued to increase and spread to a one-storey plywood store located to the left side of the building. Officials said that the hardware store and plywood store shared boundaries.

Fire department officials said they broke the shutters to start dousing operations. In the interim, they also used a 42-metre hydraulic ladder to douse the fire on the third floor of the hardware store, as the intensity of the fire was the highest there and they wanted to prevent it from spreading to other shops in the vicinity.

As roads leading to the spot were narrow, traffic from Rajiv Chowk moving towards Sohna Chowk was also diverted.

Officials turned off the power at the site as a section of overhead electric cables was also located in close proximity to the hardware store.

With more than 1,200 shops and 350 street vendors, Sadar Bazar receives a high footfall in the evening hours. The fire department and Gurugram police officials cordoned off the site due to a high number of onlookers and also directed shopkeepers and other customers to move their vehicles to a safe distance.

“Around 20-25 fire tenders are dousing the blaze. We are expecting to control it around midnight. No person has suffered any injuries in the incident. The fire has gutted two shops and dousing operations are underway to prevent it from spreading to other nearby shops,” said Sunil Adlakha, fire safety officer.