Bullets, gunpowder gutted as fire hits Verna ammo company
Bullets and gunpowder were gutted in a major fire that broke out at Hughes Precision Manufacturing Pvt Ltd, at IDC Verna early on Saturday.
Verna fire station in charge Dilesh Gaonkar told
TOI
that the fire broke out around 4am, and the firefighters received a call from the headquarters about the accident around 4.10am.
'Live and spent bullets and gunpowder stored in one room of the company were destroyed by the flames,' Gaonkar said. 'Boxes containing ammunition turned to ashes, but luckily no casualties were reported.'
He said that fire tenders were pressed into service from Verna, Vasco, Margao, and Panjim.
'According to the company's officials, CCTV cameras captured smoke coming out of the storage room,' Gaonkar said. 'The preliminary probe has suggested that a short circuit could be the reason for the massive fire.'
Gaonkar said that the Verna fire station has asked the company to provide details on the materials gutted and the loss incurred in the fire. Sources said the loss could run into crores. The company supplies ammunition to the Indian defence forces.
The fire tenders were deployed at the company site till late on Saturday.
'Although we succeeded in extinguishing the flames, we are monitoring the site,' Gaonkar said.
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