Daijiworld Media Network – Karkala

Karkala, Mar 3: A major fire that had been sporadically appearing over the last five days near Swaraj Maidan, adjacent to the Ramasamudra area, spread extensively on Tuesday. Municipal and fire brigade personnel had to toil hard for several hours to bring the situation under control.

To prevent the flames from spreading further, two municipal tankers and two fire brigade vehicles were deployed in a continuous operation. The firefighting efforts were led by municipal environment engineer Laila Thomas and her team of officials, alongside fire brigade assistant station officer Chandrashekhar. Personnel including Rupesh, Ganesh, Dinesh, Muzambir, and Bhimappa were actively involved in dousing the flames.

Former municipal member Winnibold D'Souza expressed suspicion that the fire might have been caused by miscreants. He noted that individuals often frequent the area for leisure and may have discarded lit cigarettes or bidis, leading to such incidents.

The operation to extinguish the fire continued uninterrupted from 12 noon on Tuesday until the evening. Officials noted that even a slight delay or lapse in caution could have allowed the fire to reach nearby residential zones, potentially leading to a major disaster. Fortunately, the blaze has now been completely brought under control due to the persistent efforts of the teams.