Shillong, November 10: A massive fire engulfed a warehouse belonging to Party Decorators at Demseiniong in Shillong on Tuesday afternoon, destroying goods estimated to be worth between ₹1.5 crore and ₹2 crore. A major tragedy was averted following the swift intervention of police, fire services and central security forces, who evacuated nearby buildings and prevented the flames from spreading.
East Khasi Hills Superintendent of Police Vivek Syiem said emergency services responded immediately after receiving information about the incident, with fire tenders reaching the spot within seven to ten minutes. “It happened around 2:30 pm and as you know schools close at that time, so there is a lot of rush, but we tried our best to get fire tenders on time. The fire tenders in fact within 7-10 minutes were here,” Syiem told reporters.
Six fire tenders from the Meghalaya State Police Fire Service were deployed to combat the blaze, while additional firefighting assistance was provided by personnel from the Border Security Force (BSF), Assam Rifles and Indian Air Force.
According to the Superintendent of Police, the warehouse contained large quantities of highly inflammable materials, including mattresses, synthetic materials, chairs and carpets, which contributed to the intensity of the fire. “The godown contains a lot of mattresses, synthetic materials, chairs, carpet,” Syiem said.
The warehouse belongs to Rajesh Syiem, the owner of Party Decorators, who estimated that the fire had caused losses ranging from ₹1.5 crore to ₹2 crore.
Speaking to reporters after approximately three hours of firefighting operations, Rajesh Syiem said the fire had destroyed a large quantity of equipment and materials stored inside the warehouse. He stated that the exact cause of the blaze was still unknown. However, he confirmed that workers who were inside the warehouse when the fire broke out had managed to escape safely.
Meanwhile, SP Vivek Syiem said the police were examining possible causes of the fire, including an electrical short circuit or cooking activities inside the warehouse. “We are yet to ascertain what caused the fire, but we have spoken to the owners, probably a possibility of short circuit or probably somebody was cooking in the warehouse,” he said.
The SP clarified that the extent of the damage had not yet been officially assessed and that a detailed estimate would be determined later. He said the immediate priority of the police and emergency personnel was to ensure public safety, evacuate nearby buildings and prevent the fire from spreading to adjoining properties.
As soon as emergency responders reached the location, police cordoned off the affected area and regulated traffic to facilitate the movement of fire tenders and other emergency vehicles. Residents and occupants of nearby buildings were evacuated as a precautionary measure.
Police and emergency personnel also removed gas cylinders from the surrounding area to reduce the risk of explosions and prevent the situation from escalating. “There are no casualties. Our priority as soon as we got here, we cordoned off the place, managed traffic so that fire brigade could get here, evacuated the nearby building, got all the gas cylinders out, so that the fire does not spread elsewhere,” Syiem said.
Despite the intensity of the blaze and the presence of highly combustible materials inside the warehouse, no loss of life was reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, while the authorities have yet to officially determine the total extent of the property damage.
