DELHI: A fire broke out at a warehouse in Shanti Mohalla, Gali No. 6, under the jurisdiction of Krishna Nagar police station in Shahdara district on Friday. Several Delhi Fire Service (DFS) vehicles were rushed to the spot, and firefighting operations are underway.A local resident, Anil Verma, said the fire broke out suddenly and claimed that a short circuit may have triggered the blaze.“It (fire) was caused by a short circuit. It just broke out suddenly… This is a dead-end lane in Shanti Mohalla—Lane Number 6… It falls under Krishna Nagar police station… We suddenly noticed the fire from outside… All the properties in this lane are used as warehouses. We’ve informed everyone, and they have all arrived. They are textile warehouses… No one is trapped inside. Everyone else is safe and sound,” he told reporters.The incident comes hours after a massive fire broke out at a shop in Puri Plaza, 13 Block, Chain Wali Gali, Gaffar Market, Karol Bagh, Delhi.After hours of firefighting, the blaze was brought under control. No casualties or injuries have been reported so far, with only property damage reported.Delhi Police said that, prima facie, overheating or overcharging of batteries appeared to be a possible cause of the fire. A report will be sought from the Fire Department and the Electrical Inspector to ascertain the exact cause. The building will also be examined by a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team to check for the presence of any other combustible material.Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has sought details about the fire that affected approximately 140 shops across two buildings in Karol Bagh. Once the fire is completely extinguished, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) will have both buildings evacuated.Delhi Fire Service Divisional Officer Mukesh Verma said the incident was escalated to a ‘medium category’ fire and that around 40 to 45 shops were affected. “Initial reports suggested the fire started in a shop dealing in batteries,” he told reporters.“From there, it gradually spread to the upper floors. In total, 27 fire tenders and around 125 personnel were deployed. It was a very demanding operation because the lanes are narrow. Furthermore, as it is the festival season, the shops were stocked with a large quantity of goods, much of which was highly flammable, making the firefighting efforts quite difficult. We observed a few fire extinguishers installed here, but the fire protection system required for a building of this nature was not present,” he added.(With Agency Inputs)
