60 fires in 24 hours: Jammu battles major blazes on Diwali night, 35 incidents in district alone

Jammu witnessed an unusually hectic night for firefighters on Diwali, with fire and emergency services responding to 60 fire incidents across Jammu Province in just 24 hours, including 35 in Jammu district alone.

The situation was particularly challenging on the evening of November 8, when 16 fire incidents were reported in Jammu district within barely five hours from 7 pm onwards. A series of major emergencies, including fires in a commercial building, a warehouse, a marriage tent and a medical store, forced the department to mobilise firefighting teams from multiple stations simultaneously.

The biggest firefighting operation was launched at a warehouse-cum-shopping complex at 9:18 pm, where stocks of grocery and ration items, including cooking oil and ghee, fuelled a major blaze. As many as 18 fire tenders were pressed into service from different fire stations and strategically stationed locations across Jammu.

After an intensive firefighting operation lasting around one-and-a-half hours, the blaze was brought under control. Around seven shops suffered damage, but firefighters managed to prevent the fire from spreading to a large number of adjoining shops. Police, SDRF and the District Administration assisted in the operation.

Another major fire had erupted at 8:37 pm in a five-storeyed residential-cum-commercial building at Pahari Mohalla. Six fire tenders were initially mobilised from Gandhi Nagar and City Fire Stations, with the first City Fire Station vehicles reaching the spot within seven minutes of the incident being reported. The deployment was subsequently increased to seven tenders. The blaze was brought under control in approximately 45 minutes.

The firefighting teams were called into action again at 10:28 pm after a marriage tent caught fire at Garden Estate. Four fire tenders reached the spot within seven to eight minutes, while another was dispatched from Bari Brahmana as reinforcement. The fire was brought under control in around 30 minutes.

Barely an hour later, at 11:40 pm, another fire broke out on the third floor of Janta Medical Store at Shalimar, housed in a four-storeyed building. Five fire tenders were eventually deployed, with the first reaching the spot at 11:46 pm. The blaze was brought under control within approximately half an hour.

Anticipating the heightened fire risk during Diwali celebrations, Fire and Emergency Services had stationed fire tenders at strategic locations, including Gole Market, Gandhi Nagar and Gangyal, to ensure quicker response to emergencies. Regular fire stations also remained operational and supplemented these deployments as the situation unfolded.

The department said the simultaneous occurrence of multiple fire incidents placed considerable demands on its manpower, equipment and operational capacity. Nevertheless, firefighting teams attended all reported emergencies.

The hectic night underscored the scale of the challenge faced by Fire and Emergency Services, with dozens of emergencies reported across Jammu Province during the festive period and multiple firefighting operations having to be conducted simultaneously.