SILCHAR: A massive fire broke out in the Khelma locality of Ramnagar in Silchar on the night of Friday. A total of 8 houses were reportedly gutted in the incident that started because of a problem with the voltage in the electric lines.
Victims of the incident mentioned that all their belongings were reduced to ashes because of the incident and they could not even save important documents and other items. They also alleged that the negligence of the electricity department was to be blamed for this incident and demanded strict action against them. The estimated losses because of the incident is said to be around 30 lakhs.
According to the officials of the fire and emergency department, the fire started in the house of one Dayanand Singh and soon spread to the surrounding areas. It spread quickly to the neighbouring houses as the bursting of a cooking gas cylinder further accelerated the spread.
Four fire engines from the fire and emergency department were dispatched soon after receiving the information about the fire. But by the time they reached the location, all the houses were completely gutted by the inferno, which was finally controlled after the efforts of the personnel of the fire and emergency department.
The local people expressed strong resentment against the electricity department and demanded that proper action be taken against those responsible. They also pointed out that the power was down for more than 24 hours because of the storm but when the power was finally restored, the voltage was twice the normal. This caused electrical appliances including lights and fans to explode in the locality and this is what triggered the fire. They mentioned that local people had raised the matter with the concerned authorities, but no action was taken regarding the same.
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