Fire at Bindapur shop destroys goods worth ₹5 crore, no casualties

Delhi fire department officials suspect the fire started because of a short-circuit and it rapidly engulfed the building’s upper floors and the adjacent building because of strong winds that had been blowing since midnight.

A fire broke out early Friday morning at a three-storey sweet shop in southwest Delhi’s Bindapur, destroying a four-storey clothing showroom next to it and incinerating clothes, furniture, and other goods worth around ₹5 crore, the police said. No casualty was reported from the spot.

Fire at Bindapur shop destroys goods worth ₹5 crore, no casualties (HT Photo)

A total of 25 fire-tenders and as many fire fighters were pressed into service to douse the blaze, which started around 2.30am from the ground floor of the sweet shop. Although the fire was controlled and doused by 7pm, the cooling operation continued till late into the afternoon.

Delhi fire department officials suspect the fire started because of a short-circuit and it rapidly engulfed the building’s upper floors and the adjacent building because of strong winds that had been blowing since midnight.

Chief fire officer Atul Garg said the fire control room received a call regarding a fire on the ground floor of a sweets shop on Arya Samaj Road in Bindapur. “We sent 25 fire tenders as the fire was of medium category and was spreading rapidly because of the strong winds,” Garg said.

Another official, requesting anonymity, said local residents told the fire fighters that they first saw some electric sparks and fire on the ground floor signboard of the sweet shop. The blaze soon reached the first floor and engulfed another signboard.

“Since the signboard of the clothes showroom on its first floor was connected with that of the sweet shop’s, it also caught fire. By the time our fire tenders reached, the flames had already engulfed the entire sweets shop building and the clothes showroom building, except its ground floor,” said the fire official.

The presence of inflammable items such as clothes and furniture helped the fire spread quickly. Nobody was present in the shop at the time of the incident, the official added.

No case was registered in connection with the fire incident till late Friday evening, the police said.