Fire in collector’s chamber,no injuries

District Collector Chandrakant Dalvi’s chamber on first floor of the two-storeyed building was partly gutted when a fire broke out in the room Thursday afternoon. While no one was injured,there was considerable damage to the room as fixtures such as air conditioners and furniture were charred.

However,all documents kept in the room were salvaged and shifted out. “We suspect the fire broke out due to a short circuit,” said Dalvi. “I had gone for a review meeting with tehsildars around 3.30 pm. There was nobody in the chamber when the fire broke out around 4 pm. Our staff saw smoke coming out of the chamber and immediately informed the police and the fire brigade. The staff also shifted all the documents and some furniture safely into other rooms before the fire spread in the chamber. As a result,major damage was averted,” he said.

An officer at the district collectorate said the fire might have started from one of the four air conditioners. Vijay Bhilare of city fire brigade,however,said the cause of fire was not confirmed.

“We got the call at 4.22 pm and within three minutes our team reached the spot. Some window glasses broke due to heat. The fire was extinguished in 15 minutes,” he said.

Meanwhile,the smoke coming out from the collector’s chamber and the noise of window glasses breaking created panic on the district collectorate premises.

A team from Bund Garden police station rushed to the spot. Dalvi visited his chamber along with his colleagues soon after the fire was extinguished.