Fire blazes all night at paint unit in Ghaziabad, two cattle die

The incident took place around 9.45pm on Sunday and fire tenders from Vaishali, Ghaziabad, Hindon airbase and Noida were rushed in to control the blaze. According to fire officials, dozens of containers of thinner, caught fire leading to an explosion that rose almost 20 feet in air.

The fire department rushed nearly 20 fire tenders to control a major fire that broke out at a paint manufacturing unit in Kavi Nagar late Sunday night.

The raging fire at a paint manufacturing unit in Kavi Nagar could be seen several kilometres away and could not be controlled fully, despite the Ghaziabad officials roping in their temporary foam firefighting team and 20 fire tenders to battle the blaze. (Sakib Ali /HT Photo)

According to officials, two cattle died while six were saved as they were trapped in the factory complex.

The incident took place around 9.45pm on Sunday and fire tenders from Vaishali, Ghaziabad, Hindon airbase and Noida were rushed in to control the blaze. According to fire officials, dozens of containers of thinner, caught fire leading to an explosion that rose almost 20 feet in air.

“The water supply also fell short and we had to procure water from nearby industries and even a hospital located on NH-24. The fire could be controlled only by 6am and was completely doused by Monday noon. The heat and the intensity of the blaze also affected the firefighting measures,” said Akshay Ranjan Sharma, chief fire officer, Ghaziabad.

The department also roped in a foam tender from neighbouring Noida as the fire also spread to chemicals stored at the unit.

The department also roped in a foam tender from neighbouring Noida as the fire also spread to chemicals stored at the unit. (Sakib Ali /HT Photo)

The raging fire could be seen several kilometres away and could not be controlled fully, despite the Ghaziabad officials roping in their temporary foam firefighting team.

“Since the fire took place in an open area in the unit, the foam tender could not do much. Had it been inside a covered area, we could have covered the area with foam to douse the flames. However, no human casualty was reported as Sunday was a holiday. The reason for the fire could be a short circuit or someone throwing away a lit cigarette or a similar item casually,” Sharma said.

The district officials on Monday also sent a report about the incident to the state administration. More than 50 fire personnel and dozens of police personnel from nearby police stations remained stationed throughout the night to douse the flames.

The officials said it was the first major fire incident to take place in an industrial unit this year. The loss of property is yet to be ascertained. The officials said each of the fire tender made 7-8 rounds to the site to douse the flames.