Warehouse reduced to ashes in blaze

As many as 30 firefighters, 12 fire engines put out fire in Raja Bazaar

RAWALPINDI: A huge fire broke out in a cotton warehouse in the Namak Mandi area of Raja Bazar early on Friday morning, gutting goods worth millions of rupees and injuring one business owner who tried to save his goods.

Witnesses and rescue workers said that the fire began in two shops of a four-storey complex at around 2:50am. With stores in the building dealing in cotton-based products such as bedding and hosiery along with some plastic goods, the blaze quickly spread and engulfed as many as 20 stores.



Soon after the blaze started, fire tenders of Rescue 1122 were rushed to the spot. After fighting the blaze for around nine hours, the fire was brought under control.

But just when the firefighters thought they had subdued the blaze, it erupted again, prompting rescue workers to seek support from fire tenders stationed in adjoining areas. Eyewitnesses said that the fire in the cotton warehouse was so intense that flames could be seen rising into the air from afar. Moreover, they said that a large number of traders and locals gathered on the spot during the firefighting operation concerned for their goods and police had to be called in to disperse them.

District Emergency Officer Dr Abdul Rehman said that by the time Rescue 1122 teams arrived at the scene, the fire had become quite intense. He said that as many as 30 firefighters along with 12 fire bowsers were used to put out the fire. A Rescue 1122 spokesperson said that in addition to fire tenders of Rescue 1122, trucks of the Capital Development Authority’s (CDA) Fire Emergency Unit, Bahria Town Firefighters, Attock Rescue 1122, Tehsil Fire Emergency, and WASA took part in the firefighting process. Moreover, the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO) staff cut off the power supply to the Raja Bazaar are to avoid any major tragedy during the firefighting operation.

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Dr Rehman said that Azeem Jaffar, an 18-year-old businessman who was assisting the fire brigade in the firefighting operation, suffered burn injuries and had to be shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital.

Dr Rehman added that the affected building is located in a densely populated area with only one way to enter and exit the building which made access difficult.

“The lack of emergency exits and fire extinguishers in the building caused difficulties in the firefighting process,” the rescue official said, adding that the cotton and plastic goods burning inside the stores created highly toxic fumes, forcing firefighters to use oxygen masks to protect themselves.

With limited access, Dr Rehman said that they had to smash through the shutters of some of the shops to reach the upper parts of the building. A snorkel also helped raise firefighters to fight the fire from an elevation.

Furthermore, to stop the spread of the fire, Dr Rehman said that traders in adjoining buildings and markets were told to empty their stores lest it is destroyed as well.

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After burning for nine hours, Dr Rehman said that they managed to put the inferno out. However, by that time, he said that it had caused tremendous damage to the building and the goods stored there.

Sharjeel Mir, the president of the Markazi Anjuman Tajiran, said that after the fire broke out, aid agencies had arrived in time.

“The firefighters did a lot of work without caring for their lives,” Mir said, adding that now it is the government's job to provide financial assistance to the traders affected by the disaster.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 23^rd, 2020.