AHMEDABAD: The city fire brigade reported two major fires. While a fire at a textile unit in Chagodar was controlled after more than 16 hours of fire-fighting, a fire at a firecracker factory at Vaanch village near Kanbha was controlled in four hours. A worker at Vaanch unit was reported dead.
According to the Ahmedabad Fire and Emergency Services (AFES) officials, Shah Textile at Mahagujarat Estate in Changodar reported a fire at 6.55 am on Monday. Senior officials said that the reason for the fire is yet to be ascertained but it is suspected that somebody accidentally dropped a bidi on the floor because of which bales of cotton caught fire. The two-floor storehouse for the stock was engulfed in flames.
"Fire-fighting started soon after the call and continued till 9 pm," said Rajesh Bhatt, the additional chief fire officer, AFES. "A team was deployed even after the flames were doused to contain the heat so that it did not start another fire in the vicinity."
At Kanbha, a fireworks factory named Royal Fireworks reported fire at noon. The fire was reported after an explosion ripped a small workshop apart. Villagers converged on the spot after hearing the blast. The fire caused the death of Jeetendra Vaghela, 30, a resident of CTM. "We suspect that the fire was caused by negligence," said an AFES official."The entire unit was covered in gunpowder used for making firecrackers that immediately caught fire," he added.