15 HOUSES GUTTED IN GURUPORA BLAZE

Srinagar, Nov 19: At least 15 houses were gutted in a devastating fire incident at Gurupora area of Rainawari locality here on Tuesday evening.

Chaotic scenes were witnessed as several women were wailing near their houses that were reduced to ashes in the blaze on Tuesday evening.

Witnesses said that scores of families, most of them from weak economic backgrounds, lost their houses amid bone-chilling cold. The officials from the Fire and Emergency service said that they pressed fire tenders from River fire stations Nehru Park, Nigeen, and Headquarters to douse the flames.

“At least 15 structures were gutted in the blaze. These were mostly sheds built with tin and wood, and it took no time for the fire to spread. Seven structures were pucca, while others were mostly made of tin and wood. We tried our best to control the fire and prevented fire from spreading further,” said an official from River F&E station Nigeen. He said the cause of the fire is being ascertained.

The Fire and Emergency official said that the final figure of the damages will be known only after the operation concludes.

The fire victims in the area said that the lack of connectivity to the area of Dal Interiors made the situation worse. They said the fire could have been kept under control, but there are no proper roads or bridges, which hindered the operations of F&E Services.

“As other areas of Srinagar witnesses developmental works, we crave for basic facilities like bridges and roads. Politicians remember us only during elections, and this incident left us homeless in the absence of proper roads,” said a fire victim.

The victims said that most of them work as fishermen, and the community is economically weak. “We have lost everything in this incident. Except for the clothes that we are wearing, there is nothing left. There are scores of families that live in these houses, and this is all we had. Some of the victims are ailing,” said a local.

They appealed to the government to provide necessary relief so that they could rebuild their houses.