A massive fire broke out on Sunday morning at a godown cluster in Gangadham Nagar near Aai Mata Chowk, engulfing around a dozen godowns. The fire, the cause of which is yet to be ascertained, rapidly spread through the area, causing extensive damage. No physical injuries were reported in the incident. Fire brigade officials said they had received a call at 8.55 am. As many as 22 fire tenders from the Pune Fire Brigade and the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) were pressed into service to combat the flames. A massive fire broke out in a godown in Pune's Gangadham area on Sunday pic.twitter.com/LVyRy7zpSi — Express PUNE (@ExpressPune) June 18, 2023 The affected godowns, most of which were older than five years, housed a variety of materials belonging to different businesses including pandal and decorations, cold drinks, biscuits, fabrication material, automobile spare parts, and hardware. Praveen Shah, the owner of Pragati Automobiles, said the cumulative loss of materials may amount to more than Rs 25 crore. Parasmal Rathore, a relative of Ashok Shah, owner of Ashok Mandap decorators which suffered the maximum damage, expressed concern over the livelihood of approximately 250 workers employed by the firm, after the loss of all equipment and material. Shabir Sheikh, a fire brigade driver, burned his leg while attempting to extinguish the blaze. He said, "The fire is massive; it will likely take another day to fully control it." Sheikh had been working on the scene to help put out the fire since 9 am. Dhanesh Jain, the owner of Shri Adinath Auto Spares, suspected that a short circuit could have sparked off the blaze, but was uncertain. While Jain estimated that around 10 to 15 shops were destroyed, he confirmed that six to seven shops were completely ravaged. The fire at the godown cluster marks one of the most significant fire incidents this year, surpassing the recent timber market fire in Bhavani Peth. Despite the scale of destruction, no casualties were reported. An investigation is underway to ascertain the exact circumstances that led to the devastating incident.
