2 industrial units gutted in Nalagarh

Ambika Sharma

Tribune News Service

Solan, January 22

Two transformer manufacturing units at Kripalpur village in the Nalagarh industrial area were destroyed in a massive fire which erupted in Jay Bee Industries and its adjoining unit Eco Power around 9 pm yesterday.

The loss of more than Rs 10 crore has been reported though being a Sunday, no manufacturing was underway and there was no loss of life. Security guards, who noticed the fire, informed the fire brigade staff at Nalagarh.

It took nearly 7 hours for firemen to control the fire though another 5 hours were spent dousing it completely. Though the exact cause of the fire will be ascertained only after an inquiry, preliminary reports indicate short circuit as the probable cause. The power supply was disconnected around 9:30 pm by the staff of the Electricity Department.

The fire, which started from the main shed of Jay bee Industries, soon spread and the presence of two transformer oil tanks of nearly 40,000-litre capacity gave the firemen tough time, informed Fire Officer Hitender Kanwar.

The high rising flames soon spread towards the Eco Power unit adjoining Jay Bee Industries and the presence of two more tanks of transformer oil further intensified the blaze. Black plume of smoke was seen which created a scare in the nearby units. A house lying in the vicinity was vacated as precaution.

Eight fire tenders were pressed into service from Nalagarh, Baddi, Parwanoo, Ropar Thermal Plant as well as other industrial units like Vardhman Textiles, HUL and JB Conductors to control it.

Eco Power lacked the requisite fire fighting certification. Though Jay Bee Industries did have a valid fire-fighting authorisation, being a holiday, there was no employee available to operate the system. By the time the security guards raised the alarm, fire became uncontrollable.

With smoke continuing to rise from the two units, the fire men were on the job till this evening. Both units, which were running from tinned sheds, were gutted. A team of forensic science experts also visited the site to ascertain the cause of this mishap.

Short-circuit the likely reason

• The fire, which started from the main shed of Jay bee Industries, soon spread and the presence of two transformer oil tanks gave the firemen a tough time
• The high-rising flames soon spread to another unit and the presence of two more tanks of transformer oil further intensified the blaze
• Preliminary reports indicate short circuit as the probable cause