Fire razes three stalls at Lall Bazaar

GANGTOK, 18 Dec: A fire broke out on the first floor of the Kanchenjunga Shopping Complex [Lall Bazaar] early morning on Saturday reducing three aloo-chewra shops to ashes. Thanks to prompt action by the Gangtok Fire Station, the fire was stopped from spreading to other shops on the first floor. As per preliminary investigation, a short circuit is being seen as the reason behind the fire.

The fire, which broke out at around 4:10 AM on Saturday, has completely destroyed the shops belonging to Pramod Mahato, Devanand Mahato and Chandra Shekhar Mahato.
Gangtok Fire Station received the fire call at around 4:40 AM and a fire team led by Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Prakash Rai, along with three fire tenders immediately rushed to the spot and started the fire fighting operation. The Fire Station team was also supported by a team of Police personnel.
The DCFO informs that as soon as the team reached the spot and started its operation, the fire was brought completely under control within 20 minutes and stopped from spreading to other shops.
He also informed that the Fire & Emergency Services had earlier approached the concerned department for a proper fire fighting water supply system in the complex as a precautionary measure in case of such incidents.
The locals expressed that the fire could have been more disastrous if it had broken out during day time as these shops and the floor are always packed with people. They also mentioned that the automatic sprinklers of the fire security system installed did not work. It was also informed that this is the third such incident at the complex.
The spot was also visited by the Mayor and Deputy Mayor of Gangtok Municipal Corporation later in the morning.