MARGAO: A fire broke out inside the old waste treatment plant at the Sonsoddo dump site, just a day after the Margao Municipal Council tendered the work of fire-fighting provisions at the legacy landfill. The absence of necessary provisions and the massive amount of garbage posed challenges for the firefighters.
On Friday around 8 am, the Fire and Emergency Services in Margao received information about the fire at the Sonsoddo dump yard. Firefighters rushed to the spot and found that the waste dumped inside the old plant was on fire. After a struggle to enter the plant, the fire personnel managed to douse the flames.
Herculano Gil Souza, the Fire Officer at Margao, confirmed that the firefighters successfully extinguished the fire. The last fire incident at Sonsoddo was reported in March this year.
In response to the incident, residents of Margao urged the government and the municipal council to expedite the resolution of the garbage issue at Sonsoddo. The massive amount of garbage that has piled up inside the shed has left no alternative for daily waste disposal within the jurisdiction of Margao Municipality.
Custodio Fernandes, a resident of Borda, told O Heraldo, “The amount of garbage inside the shed is massive, but the lack of alternative dumping sites has forced the civic body to continue dumping waste there. The authorities and the government need to find another solution to prevent a major disaster.”
Fernandes also commended the efforts of the civic body and other authorities in clearing the legacy dump that was located outside the shed. “Considering the deplorable state of the shed, mounting garbage may not be the only issue here . The shed is at risk of collapsing at any moment,” warned Margao local Rohan Naik.
