Fire in school hostel room

GURGAON: A fire broke out in the hostel of G D Goenka World School on Sohna Road on Thursday afternoon, gutting one room. However, no one was hurt as students were in classes at the time and the hostel room was empty.
Around 3.30pm, the staffers noticed flames coming out of a room on the second floor of the hostel building. They informed the fire brigade and two fire tenders from Sector 29 station and Sohna each were rushed to the spot.The tenders reached the school at 3.40 pm.
The firemen, however, could not immediately enter the room as furniture like tables and cupboards obstructed the way, said sources. Heavy smoke was coming from the mattresses of three beds, obscuring the view into the room, the corridor and the stairs leading to the room.
The firemen had to crawl to enter the room on the second floor. Once there, they broke open a window to release the smoke. After letting the smoke out, it took them another 25 minutes to control the fire. The furniture and false ceiling of the room were left completely charred by the fire.
"It could have been a major fire but fortunately the school authorities had proper fire safety measures and they even managed to stop the fire from spreading further by the time we reached. So the fire was controlled in less than half an hour," said I S Kashyap, senior fire officer.
Sources said a short circuit in a plug point near the bed caused the fire. The sparks from the plug point reportedly fell on the mattresses and it caught fire. "The school should make sure only certified electrical equipment and plugs are used," said a parent.
Despite repeated attempts, school authorities remained unavailable for a comment.