Fire in scrap and garbage at Thane's Kolshet put out after about two hours; two other blazes reported

A fire broke out in garbage and scrap kept inside a compound at Taraya Pada on Creek Road in Kolshet, Thane (West), on Wednesday night, 11 November.

The fire was reported at 10.44 pm. Fire brigade personnel and officials of the disaster management department left immediately and reached the spot.

Disaster management officer Yasin Tadvi arrived with fire personnel and a jumbo water tanker. Staff of the disaster management cell also came in a pickup vehicle. Police personnel were present at the site.

With the help of the fire personnel and the disaster management staff, the fire was brought fully under control. It was completely extinguished at 12.20 am on Thursday, 12 November.

In a separate incident in Thane city, early on Wednesday, a godown storing pandal decoration material caught fire, civic body officials said. They said there were no reports of casualties.

Tadvi, head of the regional disaster management cell, said the call about the fire reached the emergency services at 2.02 am. The fire was in a 25 ft by 20 ft shed on an open ground in Kharegaon in the Kalwa area, which was used as a godown for pandal decoration material.

According to Tadvi, the fire destroyed a lot of wooden material, carpets, decoration equipment and the structure of the godown shed. Fire personnel and disaster management staff reached the spot and the fire was put out by 3.40 am. The officer said the cause of the fire is under investigation.

Meanwhile, in south Mumbai on Wednesday, an air conditioner unit at the official bungalow of Maharashtra Forest Minister Ganesh Naik caught fire, fire officials said. No injuries were reported.

According to officials, the incident took place at 11.43 am at Naik's Pawangad bungalow, which is directly opposite the state secretariat, Mantralaya. Naik, a BJP leader, is the MLA from Airoli in neighbouring Navi Mumbai and was not at home at the time.

Fire engines reached the spot on receiving the call, and it was declared a Level-1 call. Officials said a Level-1 fire is usually handled with the initial deployment of fire resources. The fire brigade took about an hour to put out the fire and secure the bungalow, and the blaze was brought under control by 12.42 pm. The cause of the fire in the AC unit is not yet clear.