Sushil Singh, Special Commissioner shared the video and images of the blazing flames on Twitter. He wrote, “Major #fire broke out in the shops of #Bhagirath Palace market of Chandni Chowk area in Old #Delhi. Around 20 fire tenders rushed to the spot. The process of extinguishing is underway. Efforts are being put in to douse the fire. Fire has not been brought under control so far."
During the firefighting operations, five major buildings were reportedly affected, three of which collapsed. According to the fire department, a call about the blaze was received at 9.19 pm on Thursday and 40 fire tenders were rushed to the spot.
22 fire tenders are currently working to cool the area down as the fire has been extinguished after more than 12 hours, according to a fire department official.
According to officials, the fire started in one of the Mahalaxmi Market's electrical appliance-related shops and quickly spread to others that were close by. White smoke billowed high in the sky as the toxic stench of burning plastic and rubber polluted the air.
Director of Delhi Fire Service Atul Garg told PTI, "Fire is under control. Now, 22 fire tenders are working on cooling operations. The cause of the fire is not yet known."
The fire department, NDRF, MCD, and reserve police force all rushed to the scene as soon as word of the fire was received, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi. Senior government officials also arrived at the scene, he said.
"Every effort was put in to douse the fire. There is no casualty at present. Five major buildings were affected and these housed around 100 shops which got incinerated. Of the five affected buildings, three have collapsed," he added.
Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, expressed sorrow over the incident and said he is gathering information from the relevant district administration about the current state of affairs.
"This incident of fire in Bhagirath Palace market of Chandni Chowk late last night is very sad. Since last night, the fire brigade personnel are working hard to douse the flames. I am taking information about this from district administration," he tweeted in Hindi.
(With inputs from PTI)
