Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): A fire broke out in the basement of Block-C of Mansarovar Complex, located in front of the BJP office, around 4 pm on Sunday. The fire started in the garbage lying in the basement of the block and then spread to adjoining shops. No casualties were reported in the incident, and the loss due to the blaze is yet to be ascertained. Since it was Sunday, the shops were closed. Panic spread in the complex after people spotted smoke coming from the shops situated in the basement.
The guards at the block informed the fire control room about the blaze at 4.32 pm. About 15 minutes later, fire tenders were dispatched from Pul Bogda, Mata Mandir, ISBT, Govindpura and Fatehgarh fire stations.
Fire officer Rameshwar Neel said, 'The cause of the fire is not known. Fire broke out in a pile of garbage in a pit in the basement. As it was Sunday, all the shops were closed so fire continued to spread inside a few shops in the basement without coming to the notice of anyone. It was only when people saw smoke coming out from shops that they realized that fire had broken out. But by then, it had spread to four to five shops in the basement of the Mansarover Complex.'
According to the locals, there is a pit at the corner of the basement where the people dump garbage. Adjoining the pit is a closed shop whose shutter is broken and so the garbage dumped in the pit also falls in the shop.
When the dumped garbage caught fire around 4 o'clock it spread to the adjoining shop. The municipal corporation's fire engines rushed to the site and doused the fire.
