Jorhat: Two persons were killed and three injured after a massive fire broke out at an automobile repair shop near AT road in Assam's Jorhat on Sunday night.
As per reports, a total of four houses came under the grip of the inferno, that was caused due to short circuit, at around 1.30 pm. Firefighters from the fire brigade and Air Force who were rushed to the spot doused the blaze at around 04:00 am.
On Monday morning, Speaker of the Assam Legislative Assembly and Jorhat MLA Hitendra Nath Goswami reached the site to take the stock of the situation. Goswami said that after inspecting the environment, fire brigade of the district would be modernized.
"We got information about the fire at around 11:30 pm yesterday. The teams arrived and along with the locals, everyone tried to control the fire. In the incident, a couple died and two persons were seriously injured. The government should give compensation for the incident," said Dilip Agarwal, Deputy Chairman, Upper Assam Chamber of Commerce, Jorhat.
The fire spread so rapidly that the victims didn't get a chance to escape. The two deceased persons have been identified as Satyanarayana Agarwal (45) and Gomti Devi (42). The injured persons are being treated. The incident sparked panic and fear among the locals. The damage caused by the fire has not yet been established.
Prima facie the incident was caused by a short circuit.
Earlier, a major fire had broken out at Balibat area of Jorhat, the cause of the fire was suspected to be the burning of firecrackers in celebration of Bhoomi Pujan of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya on August 5.
Several shops and business establishments were destroyed in the fire incident.
With inputs from ANI
