18-room house gutted in Mandi, family left homeless

A devastating fire broke out at Titeri village in Kashod gram panchayat, Bali Chowki tehsil, Mandi district, last night, causing heavy damage to the house (comprising 18 rooms) of five brothers. The fire, which broke out last night, completely destroyed the house of Lal Singh, Nand Lal, Megh Singh, Moti Ram and Khem Singh and left them homeless.

The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. The house was made of forest wood, which caught fire rapidly.

According to Gurdev Singh, vice pradhan, Kashod gram panchayat, the entire household goods were reduced to ashes and all the rooms were completely burnt down. The local authorities were unable to control the blaze due to water shortage in the area.

Gurudev Singh was present at the scene and coordinated with the emergency teams to assess the situation.

"The fire spread rapidly. Though the authorities were alerted, lack of resources hampered firefighting efforts. The village patwari was informed and he will assess the loss. The families are now left with nothing, and efforts are underway to provide assistance. The village community is in shock, and authorities are working on investigating the cause of the fire," said Gurdev Singh.