An Air Conditioning (AC) unit on Thursday burst into flames, causing a major fire at a housing society in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad, officials said.
A house at a residential society located in Sector 1 in Ghaziabad's Vasundhara came to light when an AC device burst after it was kept running continuously for several hours due to extremely hot temperatures in the city.
"Today at around 05:30 am, the fire station of Ghaziabad, Vaishali received a call from a resident regarding a fire in house number-1009, sector-01 Vasundhara area. As soon as the information was received, two fire tenders with units including the second fire officer were rushed to the spot from the fire station Vaishali", Chief Fire Officer Rahul Pal said.
As per reports, the AC installed on the first floor of the building went up in flames after an explosion in the device. The fire soon reached the second floor.
The inmates of the house as well as the neighbours tried their best to douse the flames, but to no avail, while the local fire department was informed.
At least two fire tenders were rushed to the spot by the nearby fire department and initiated the fire-fighting operations, dousing the fire after much hassle.
As a precautionary measure, the cooking gas connection was snapped by the authorities to avert further potential damage.
"The fire unit took immediate action and saved the nearby houses as well. Some items were burnt in the fire and, due to the heat from the fire, some items kept in the house melted and got spoiled. However, there has been no loss of life in this fire", the CFO added.
Incidents of minor to major fires have been reported across the country, especially northern India, in recent weeks amid a severe heatwave sweeping through the planes with temperatures reaching as scorching as 48 to 50 degrees Celsius in many parts.
On Wednesday, a massive fire broke out at a children's eye hospital in Delhi and as many as 12 fire tenders doused the fire. The incident took place at Eye 7 Children's Hospital in Delhi's Lajpat Nagar.
