Raging inferno: Fire engulfs factory, injures three

Initial damage assessment reveals losses worth hundreds of thousands suffered.

PESHAWAR: A fire broke out at a chip-board manufacturing unit inside the Hayatabad Industrial Estate on Monday, resulting in serious burn injuries for three workers.

The fire erupted after a petrol barrel was set alight, causing one part of the factory to be engulfed in flames within minutes. Rescue 1122 was able to bring it under control after 30 minutes of fire fighting.

The injured have been identified as Muhammad Arshad, Sher Ali and Tahir Mehmood. They were rushed to a hospital for burns treatment.

Sajjad, the manager of the factory, said the damage could not be assessed accurately but estimates say that it could amount to hundreds of thousands of rupees.

In a separate incident, a plastic shoes shop owned by Muhammad Akram was gutted in Hashtnagri Railway patak area. Merchandise worth Rs70,000 was reduced to ashes within minutes. After Rescue 1122 reached the spot, fire fighters were able to contain the flames and some goods were salvaged.

This is the second fire in a factory the past four days in Peshawar. Earlier in Friday, a fire broke out in the storeroom of a mat manufacturing unit in Hayatabad Industrial Estate, destroying goods worth millions of rupees.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 30^th, 2012.