Garments, machines worth lakhs destroyed in fire

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 16

A major fire broke out at a garment showroom located in Field Ganj last night. Goods worth lakhs were gutted in the fire.

The incident was reported around 2 am when the area watchman noticed smoke billowing out of the showroom. He went to the owner’s house and informed him about smoke.

The showroom owner, Sohan Lal Ahuja, said he reached there and managed to open the shutter of the showroom. But he could not douse the flames.

He said by the time the fire engines reached there, the furniture and equipment kept in the showroom had been reduced to ashes. The fire brigade, however, prevented the fire from spreading to the nearby shops.

There was a huge power transformer located close to the showroom. Had it caught the fire, the damage to the showroom would have been even greater, said a fire official.

The official said four fire engines were used to completely douse the flames. It took the fire men about five hours to put out the fire. The fire official said a short-circuit could be the cause of the fire.

Meanwhile, residents were seen searching for clean pieces from the pile of burnt cloths dumped outside the showroom.