Factory collapses after blaze in Ludhiana; 10 dead, many trapped

Firefighters were engaged in dousing the flames, when the structure in Ludhiana’s Sufiyan Chowk in Industrial Area A collapsed.
Ludhiana : At least ten people, including two fire officials, were killed after a five-storey plastic factory building went up in flames and collapsed here on Monday. At least 20 people were feared trapped under the debris and their chances of survival were bleak, said officials.
Firefighters were engaged in dousing the flames, when the structure near the Sufiyan Chowk in Industrial Area A collapsed. “Seven bodies have been pulled out,” said deputy commissioner Pardeep Kumar Aggarwal.
The deceased are: Senior fire officer Sumohan Gill and fireman Puran Singh and Inderpal Singh, a taxi driver, who had gone to the spot to console his friend Inderjit Singh — the factory owner. The remaining four have not been identified yet.
Among those trapped are 9 fire fighters, a local Valmiki leader and some unidentified persons. Among the three injured include a man who was pulled out of rubble after nearly 10 hours. They have been hospitalised.
Rescue operations were still on and could go on through the night.
Apart from teams from National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force, five companies of the Punjab Police were called from PAP Jalandhar to assist in rescue. At least 15 fire tenders were rushed to the spot while earth-moving machinery has been pressed into service to clear the debris. Chemicals stored in Gola Plastic Factory stoked the fire, officials said.
The fire broke around 6 am and soon spread after drums of chemicals stored in the factory caught fire.
At 12.15 pm when officials were still busy controlling the flames, the building came crashing down within seconds creating panic with several firemen and people trapped in the rubble.
“We heard a loud bang and the entire building collapsed like a pack of cards,” said Sunita Rani, who was present at the spot.It took nearly 15 minutes for MC cranes to reach the spot.
The police have registered a case of causing death due to negligence under Section 304 A of the IPC against the factory owner.