Silvester D'Souza
Daijiworld Media Network - Kundapur (SP)

Kundapur, Oct 10: Fire broke out in a shop named Swasti Hardwares located in Patel Complex at Idoor-Kunhady near Kollur on Friday October 9 evening. As the fire raged for long before it could be controlled, valuable items stored in the stop, estimated worth of which happens to be Rs 40 lac, were turned into ashes.

Patel Complex, which is owned by the town-based advocate, Sarvotham Shetty, and his brother, Govardhan Shetty, happened to be an important trading point for the people living around the locality.

The fire, which supposedly was ignited due to power short circuit, began to envelope the building at around 6 pm on Friday. Painting boxes, pipes, fitting materials, and many other goods stored insidet the hardware shop caught fire and got destroyed. Although locals rushed to the spot and tried to douse fire, their efforts did not fructify.

Information had been conveyed immediately to Kollur police station and the fire brigade in the town. By the time the fire personnel came on the scene, fire had become uncontrollable, and the fire brigade worked hard for long to extinguish the flames.

Sarvotham Shetty, devastated at the tragedy, speaking to journalists, expressed the suspicion that fire was caused because of some defect in the power supply cables. The office in which he practices law, which was located near the hardware shop, also was completely gutted in the fire.

There was danger of nearby buildings catching fire. Because of the efforts of villagers, fire was confined to the said complex. No one suffered injuries in this incident.