Fire breaks out in Ranipet factory

The unit converts hazardous waste from paint industries into fuel for cement units; fire fighters take nine hours to bring it under control

A WAKE-UP CALL: Thick smoke billowing from a factory at SIPCOT Phase III, Ranipet, where a major broke out early morning on Monday.

A major fire broke out at a factory that converts industrial hazardous waste into fuel at the third phase of SIPCOT, Ranipet, early on Monday. Six fire tenders and a team of 40 to 50 fire fighters struggled for more than nine hours to bring the fire under control.

The fire broke out at the processing area of Gujarat Enviro Protection and Infrastructure Ltd. The company, according to a senior official, has been operational since 2013. It collects hazardous waste from paint industries in and around Chennai and converts it into fuel. The fuel is supplied to cement industries as a substitute for coal, he said.

Workers not present

A security guard of the company noticed the fire at about 5.15 a.m. The Fire and Rescue Services Station, SIPCOT, was alerted at 5.30 a.m. after which fire engines were rushed to the spot. Workers were not present at the time of the accident and the cause of fire was yet to be ascertained. Heavy smoke from the factory engulfed the area.

C. Murugesan, District Fire Officer, who led the fire fighting operation, said fire tenders from six stations — SIPCOT, Ranipet, Sholinghur, Arcot, Katpadi, and BHEL, — were rushed to the spot. “We used water and foam compound. The fire was brought under control by 3 p.m. but there was heavy smoke due to the presence of oil and waste cloth. We are working at cooling the place to reduce the smoke,” he said. The processing area where the fire broke out measures about 92 metres x 42 metres.

“We are following all norms and taking precautionary steps. If the fire had occurred during working hours, we could have contained its spread,” the company’s official added. Company officials refused to divulge details about chemicals handled by the company.

Officials from the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB), Vellore, inspected the factory.

P. Asokan, district environmental engineer, TNPCB, Vellore, said: “We are conducting ambience air quality survey to measure the presence of pollutants such as sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particles.”

The company possessed all valid certificates, he added.

Collector S.A. Raman inspected the factory.

Police officials and a team from the National Disaster Response Force, Arakkonam, visited the site.