LAHORE: A massive fire broke out in Waves factory located on Multan Road in second week of May.
The fire that started at 1:09pm spread so quickly that it engulfed over 60 acre of the factory premises damaging the entire stock, including home appliances.
Later, it transpired that the fire erupted in the huge stock of thermopore sheets, which is said to be highly inflammable. Hundreds of employees working in the Waves factory immediately vacated the building after they saw dense smoke followed by huge flames.
The first vehicle of Rescue 1122 responded within seven minutes of the incident. However, the other units and rescue teams reached late due to what officials claimed heavy traffic as well as construction work on the road. By the time the rescue operation started, the fire had spread to a major portion of the factory, an employee told the media.
The fire was so strong that nearby buildings were also evacuated. The rescue teams struggled to reach the source of the blaze due to dense smoke.
`We saw huge flames from the sheds where the thermopore material was stocked in a large quantity,` the employee said, adding that luckily there were not a lot of workers present at the time, as most of them had left for Friday prayers. Half of the premises comprised the factory and the other half dozens of sheds where the stock of thermopore sheets, packing material and other such inflammable material were stored, he added.
The massive fire also damaged the building and cracks appeared on its roofs and walls.
Major loss was reported in the sheds most of which were reduced to ashes.
`According to Haroon Bath, the owner of Waves Cool Industries, the fire erupted in the stock of thermopore.
Mr Haroon told police that he had procured the material in a large quantity due to peak season of purchase of home appliances. No casualty was reported in the incident.
