Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 19: Panic gripped Shalamar locality when dumped garbage inside a sewage drain caught fire.
The problem started when smoke started coming out from the manholes covering the drain and also filling the houses in the locality adjacent to Indira Chowk around 1.45 pm, police sources said, adding that fire tenders were rushed to fill the drain with water to put off the smouldering fire.
The fire, which broke out in a garbage dump and later spread to the whole area through drainage system, was doused late in the evening.
Requesting people not to dump garbage inside drains in future, SHO City Inspector Deepak Katoch said the waste material caught fire and the smoke filled the atmosphere, including the house-holds that have connected their kitchen drains with the main sewage through pipes.
Some residents claimed that their plastic pipes at their houses melted due to overheating.
The entire area including the locality opposite SMGS Hospital’s main gate was affected by the smoke emanating from the drain, forcing the residents to come out of their homes, sources said.
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