MARGAO: A house and a shop in Gandhi market, Margao, were engulfed in a fire that began around 4.30 am on Wednesday.
The owner of the shop Rafique Bepari alleged that the fire had been started outside his shop, but he did not know who was responsible.
While the shop was used for storing and selling dry fish, prawns, bombil etc, his house is located behind this shop. Rashid Bepari, Rafique’s brother, said that they were away for some personal work but had rushed back to their house when they were alerted about the fire.
Both Rashid and Rafique peg the losses at around Rs 4-5 lakh as a conservative estimate. Rafique added that their TV, fridge, air-conditioner, and other furniture and appliances inside their house were all gutted. He said their electrical wiring was also burnt and would have to be replaced as well.
Margao Station Fire Officer Gill De Souza explained that they had rushed their fire brigade truck and water tender to the shop as soon as they received the information. He however added that due to the narrow lanes of Gandhi market, they faced some difficulty in reaching the spot despite the early hour. However, they managed to douse the fire soon afterwards.
While he said the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, he said prima facie it appears that the fire started at the shop and then moved to the house.
He added that the entire shop was burnt down, while in the house, the rafters below the roof and two rooms had caught on fire.
De Souza said there were no injuries as the owners were not at home when the fire broke out. He said they had asked the owners to come to the site as they needed to open the house to try and salvage the situation inside.
