Kolkata, July 3 -- Tension spread at Alampur in Sankrail of Howrah after a major fire broke out at a bitumen factory on Thursday morning.
Though 10 fire tenders put out the flames after almost five hours, local people were panic-stricken, apprehending that such a situation may arise anytime.
According to sources, the workers of a bitumen factory were busy with their daily work when around 10 am on Thursday, a fire broke out inside the factory. Witnessing the thick black smoke coming out of a portion of the factory, the local residents alerted the workers. Within a few moments, the factory was evacuated.
Meanwhile, the police and fire brigade were informed. Initially four fire tenders were pressed into action but later four more were sent to
douse the blaze.
While firefighters were spraying water from the bowzers, a tank full of bitumen exploded as soon as it came in contact with fire. However, no one was injured in the incident. The blaze was brought under control after almost three hours. The cooling process was carried out for a couple of hours more to ensure that there is no pocket fire.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.