Chemicals, apparatus and furniture in the storeroom of Chemistry Block in Madurai Kamaraj University went up in flames following a fire accident on Thursday morning.
Five fire tenders fought for an hour to bring the flames under control. However, no one was injured in the accident.
District Fire Officer P. Saravana Kumar, who led the fire-fighting, said that the five fire-tenders, including a foam tender and a quick response vehicle from Madurai, Tallakulam, Sholavandan and Tirumangalam, put out the fire.
“As the entire storeroom was in flames where a lot of chemicals were stored, we found it difficult to put out the extinguish the fire. However, we focussed on preventing the flames from spreading to the adjacent library and another storeroom on the first floor,” he added.
The firemen pulled out a few LPG cylinders and oxygen and nitrogen cylinders, thus preventing a major accident, he said. The fire was put out after a struggle. Registrar N. Rajasekar suspected an electrical short-circuit to be the reason for the fire.
“Just minutes before the smoke was noticed, the electrical supply had been restored after a power cut,” he said. The incident was reported at around 8 a.m.
Dr. Rajasekar said that the exact damage of property could be ascertained only after verifying records.
Vice-Chancellor Kalayani Mathivanan ordered forming of a high-level committee to go into the cause of the fire and to frame guidelines to prevent recurrence of such accidents, he said.
Besides destroying the furniture, computers and apparatus, the fire also damaged the cement plastering in the building.
