500 shanties gutted; no casualties

1,000 people rendered homeless; 21 fire tenders pressed into service

Picking up the pieces: Slum dwellers after a fire broke out at Shahbad Dairy in the Capital on Tuesday.

A major fire broke out in the slums of Rohini Sector 28 on Tuesday afternoon leaving nearly 1,000 people homeless. No injuries were reported in the incident, the police said.

A Fire Department official said that they received a call from Shahbad Daulatpur at 11.37 a.m. after which 21 fire tenders were pressed into service. The fire was eventually doused after three hours though the cooling off process continued till evening.

Cause not known yet

“Approximately 500 shanties have been gutted in the fire. At least 1,000 persons lived in the slums,” the officials said adding that cause of fire is yet to be ascertained but is suspected to be a cylinder blast. A resident identified as Shah Alam said that they all saw smoke coming out of one of the houses which was vacant at that time. The fire spread within seconds to other houses as gas cylinders kept in the house began to blast. “While attempting to douse the fire, a few people suffered burns. They were taken to hospital for treatment,” he said. The fire department, however, denied any injuries caused.

The incident happened a day after over 250 shanties were gutted in Mansarovar Park leaving a six-year-old girl dead.