Fire guts iconic Dimple Lodge in Shimla; wooden work accelerated flames: fire dept

Fire department officials said that the exact cause of the fire has not been ascertained.

The extensive wooden work in the lodge and a layer of foam coating within the woodwork appeared to have accelerated the spread of the flames, they said.

The owners of the property were not present when the fire broke out. They arrived later but declined to comment on the incident.

Fire Officer Bhagat Ram Thakur told The Indian Express, “We received an emergency call from the caretakers, who live in a separate portion of the property, at Dimple Lodge… No human loss has been reported. The building, made extensively of Deodar wood, caught fire rapidly. The owners arrived while the rescue work was underway.”

He also said the woman caretaker, Veena Devi, was the first to notice the fire in one of the rooms and raised an alarm, after which other caretakers alerted the fire department and the local police.

Senior officials, including Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Shimla Jyoti Rana and SHO, PS Chhota Shimla, Inspector Mamta Raghuvanshi, also rushed to the spot.

SHO Raghuvanshi said, “The interior was completely gutted in the fire. A team of forensic experts inspected the lodge today. We will call a team from the electricity department to examine the property tomorrow.”