Blaze Guts Polymer Factory in Nerul’s Shiravane MIDC, No Casualties Reported | File Photo
Navi Mumbai: Around 80 employees of a polymer company had a lucky escape after they ran out of the factory the moment they realise it was under fire. The incident happened on Friday at 11pm at Shubhada Polymers in Shiravane MIDC area of Nerul node. It took more than 12 hours to bring the fire under control. On Saturday at around 2.30 pm, the dousing and cooling process was finished.
The fire started from the lab at the ground floor of the company following which all the employees and workers present ran to safety outside the factory. MIDC fire brigade which is five minutes away from the factory was informed first and they reached the spot.
“Due to the raw materials and chemicals present in the factory, the fire that caught was too massive and more support was called for,” a fire officer said. Later, fire tenders from Vashi, Airoli, Nerul, Koparkhairane, Kharghar, Ulwe and Kalamboli were called in to fight the fire.
The ground plus three-storeyed building was completely gutted in fire, except for the basement which had all its machinery. “The factory had its fire fighting system but when they saw fire, all of them ran for safety first,” the officer added.
Assistant Station Officer from Vashi fire station, Padaji Nirgude said, “We had fire dousing system that could be used to douse fire from outside the factory till three floors and hence we doused the fire from outside. During such a massive fire, there is always a risk of building collapse as well and hence it is risky to enter inside. Since chemical was involved, we used foam to fight the fire first.”
After the cooling process, three fire tenders were kept standby outside the factory to be used in case of any emergency. The cause of fire is being investigated.
