Thiruvananthapuram: The never-say-die spirit hundreds of fire personnel of the Kerala Fire and Rescue Services showcased on Wednesday night saved the day for the residents of Manvila and surrounding areas in the capital city when the plastic manufacturing unit went up in flames.
As many as 350 fire personnel swung into action immediately to contain the fire, which could have spread to neighbouring areas where panic-stricken residents waited with bated breath.
Director-general of Kerala Fire and Rescue Services A. Hemachandran said the department received the call at around 7.30 pm. “When our officials reached the spot, two of the five buildings in the compound were on fire,” he told DC.
“All senior officials arrived at the spot soon and immediately mobilised the manpower. The intensity of the fire was so much that we realised it was not practical to fight it. So we chalked out a plan to contain the fire to avoid life endangerment and further property loss. This worked wonderfully and our officials risked their lives to successfully isolate the fire.”
More than 50 firefighting equipment were brought to the spot. “There was absolutely no equipment shortage,” he said. “We removed combustible materials in and around the spot to avoid spreading of the fire. By 12 am, the situation became safer and we were able to put out the fire completely by 7:30 am. Luckily there was a local water source in the area.”
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan appreciated the commendable effort by the fire department. Appreciating fire personnel and others involved in putting out the fire, the chief Minister in a Facebook post on Thursday said that industries handling highly inflammable materials should take precautionary measures to avoid such incidents.
