MARGAO
Sheer providence averted a major fire tragedy in the Margao Municipal building on Wednesday noon as the minor fire in the municipal councillors’ room on the first floor of the 118-year-old Municipal building gave some anxious moments.
It so happened that before the fire, which had just started at the air-condition socket, could spread to the councillors' room and engulf the heritage building, councillor Mahesh Amonkar opened the door, only to find fire and smoke inside.
Amonkar stepped out of the room and rushed towards the table occupied by the Head Clerk Barretto to raise an alarm. He along with Barretto again went into the room and removed the curtains as they found that the fire had spread to a chair. The main electric switch was put off and water was brought from the washroom to douse the fire before it could spread to the room and damage to the building.
The incident gave some anxious moments as news spread over the fire in the corridors of the building, with officials and staff admitting that the incident could have ended up in a major tragedy, reducing the building to ashes if councillor Amonkar had not entered the room in time.
Normally, the City Fathers sit in the councillors' room every day, but none of them entered the room on Wednesday morning.
“I entered the room at the right time, otherwise the fire would have ended up in a major disaster. When I entered the room, I saw fire and smoke, and I immediately raised an alarm. I found the socket of the air conditioner on fire, with the melted material falling on the plastic chair underneath,” he said.
Amonkar said that councillor Camilo Barretto and staff also joined in the firefighting operation to bring the fire under control. “We were fortunate enough that the fire could be brought under fire without having to inform the fire brigade,” he said.
MMC electrical staff suspected that the fire broke out at the socket of the air conditioner due to overheating.
Municipality exposed over preparedness in firefighting
MARGAO:
How safe is the over-century-old Margao Municipal building? Is the 118-year-old heritage structure, one of the imposing colonial-era buildings in the commercial capital, fire-proof? Has the Margao Municipal building ever conducted a fire audit, more so when the tiled-roof building has wooden flooring and a false ceiling?
These and other questions did the rounds in the corridors of the Municipal building after a minor fire broke out in the councillors’ room on Wednesday. While the fire was put off immediately, the incident virtually exposed the civic body over its preparedness in the firefighting operation and brought to the fore the oft-repeated question of whether the building is fireproof with the fire-fighting mechanism in place to handle any eventuality.
Consider this. When a fire broke out on the first floor of the Margao Municipal building on Wednesday noon, someone rushed inside the councillors’ room with a fire extinguisher, but the same proved of no use. Reason: The person handling the extinguisher either had no knowledge of operating the device or the extinguisher had no power stacked inside.
Indeed, the incident brought to the fore an utter deficiency in firefighting preparedness and the absence of a mechanism to dish out warning sirens over the impending disaster.
Sources said it was fortunate that one of the councillors just happened to enter the room when he came across fire and smoke inside the unoccupied air-conditioned room.
“Just imagine a situation wherein the fire had to break out during lunch break when no one occupies the councillors' room or late evenings. It would have ended in a disaster,” remarked a senior fire official.
Margao Fire Officer Gill D’Sa echoed similar sentiments saying: “The fact that the Municipal building had no provision for fire and smoke detection shows the total unpreparedness in handling fires.”
The Fire Officer pointed out that since wood is extensively used in building construction, the MMC should immediately apply the fire retardant paint as a precautionary measure. “The measure may be costly, but it will save the building in times of fire emergencies,” he said.
Gill also said MMC should make provisions for fire extinguishers on both floors.
Shadow Council for Margao Convenor Savio Coutinho wondered whether the MMC would take up from slumber and get a fire audit of the municipal building after the incident.
