Fire guts shops in Quepem town

MARGAO: A shop dealing in printing works and a couple of small commercial units, housed in a tiled-roof structure at Quepem, were gutted in a fire that broke out on Monday afternoon. The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, sources in the fire and emergency services (F&ES) said. While the estimated loss is also yet to be evaluated, F&ES claimed that they were able to salvage the adjoining structures from being engulfed by the flames.
The incident occurred when the staff manning the shop had gone out for lunch, while the owner of the shop, Sandeep Gadkari, is learnt to have been out of town.
Witnesses said that the fire spread rapidly bringing down the timber truss of the structure in no time. Fire tenders from Curchorem were pressed into service and fire-fighters managed to quell the raging fire in an exercise that lasted well over two hours.