Massive blaze guts liquor brewery unit in Phase 1, leaves 3 workers injured

Locals said that the fire broke out in Batra Breweries and Distilleries unit at number 91, Industrial Area Phase 1.

As many as 15 fire tenders rushed to the spot after receiving news of the incident and tried to douse the flames, which eyewitnesses said spread rapidly through the three floors of the brewery unit and trapped workers. Additional fire tenders were later requisitioned from Mohali and Panchkula with the injured being rescued and immediately rushed to Government Multi Speciality Hospital Sector 32 Chandigarh.

According to Dr Sudhir Garg, medical superintendent of GMCH-32, three workers from the liquor factory were brought to the hospital with burns. “At the moment, one male in his 40s is admitted at the burns ward of the hospital. He has burn injuries on his face and upper body, but is stable. The other two patients have been discharged after receiving adequate treatment,” said Garg. Dr Suman Singh, director of Chandigarh’s Health Services said that at present, no patient with burns had been admitted to GMSH-16.

Meanwhile, a firefighter present at the scene said that a short circuit may have triggered the massive blaze, though the exact cause could only be determined after a proper investigation was conducted in the incident. He added that lakhs of litres of spirit that was being stored in the factory was destroyed and probably helped amplify the blaze.

Contacted, the owner of the factory, Neeraj Batra refused to comment on the issue.

According to eyewitnesses, the fire department battled with the flames throughout the day and had cordoned off the entire area, limiting access only for emergency personnel and vehicle — fire tenders, ambulances and police vehicles.

Senior officers from the Disaster Management Committee, the fire brigade, the estate office, and those from the excise department later reached the spot to take a stock of the situation, as firefighters sprayed thousands of litres of foam mixed with water in an attempt to control and douse the blaze. A hydraulic crane too had to be pressed into service to help the fire fighting operations.

“Fire department officials suspect that a short circuit could be the reason behind the fire. We have lodged a DDR. A few workers received around 5 to 15 per cent burns. No loss of human life reported, thankfully,” Inspector Ram Rattan Sharma, SHO of Industrial Area police station said.