PANAJI
Stating that the fire had been brought under control, Director of Fire and Emergency Services, Nitin Raiker has, however, said there are certain areas of concern where the Turn Table Ladder is being pressed into service to continuously douse the fire.
Raiker told The Goan that fire appliances with specialised equipment were deployed to tackle the inferno.
“Fire Fighting Appliances were dispatched from Pilerne Fire Station, Mapusa Fire Station and Fire Force Headquarters. Consequently, on monitoring the situation, fire appliances with specialised equipment such as Water Tender, Water Bowser and Turn Table Ladder were requisitioned from Fire Stations at Porvorim, Bicholim, Kundaim, Ponda, Curchorem and Margao to control the raging fire. A total of 11 Fire Appliances are on site fighting the blaze and have run a water relay approximately 30 times,” said Raiker.
He informed that the factory contained a large quantity of paint and chemicals, due to which the fire escalated and engulfed the entire factory.
“The Water Tenders were put to task to curtail the spread of fire to adjacent buildings. The fire is now under control, however, there are certain areas of concern where the Turn Table Ladder is being pressed into service for continuously dousing the fire,” said Raiker.
“The fire was so huge that the smoke from the flames was visible from several kilometres away, including Panaji. Blasts are being heard from inside the factory which had huge quantities of chemicals stored inside.”
Raiker, who was at the site and monitoring the entire Fire Fighting Operation till late at night, praised the firefighters on site for “the tremendous work in fighting the fire.”
