Team Herald
MARGAO: The Sonsoddo garbage issue has come back to haunt Madgao-nkars as a fire broke out at the dumpyard on Wednesday afternoon, giving the Margao Municipality Council (MMC) and people residing in the locality some anxious moments.
Fire-fighters worked relentlessly and managed to douse the flames. This time, the fire broke out at the legacy dump covered by tarpaulin. The incident has occurred just over four months after a major fire broke out at the dump in April this year.
The Fire and Emergency Services, Margao, said they received a call informing them about the fire, and they rushed to the site and were successful in dousing the flames.
Lyndon Pereira, former chairperson of Margao Municipal Council said that he was not aware about the incident.
“Nobody has informed me about the fire at Sonsoddo. I will inquire into the matter,” he told Herald.
The last such fire incident reported at Sonsoddo landfill was allegedly due to a short circuit of the 33KV high tension line that runs above the dump, on April 23, just before Waste Management Minister Antanasio Monserrate visited to inspect the site.
Reacting to Wednesday’s fire incident, Savio Coutinho, former chairperson of the civic body said that in light of a short dry spell, the fire incident has given a warning to the authorities to act fast.
“The bio-remediation work which commenced in 2019 is being delayed, with silly excuses like Covid-19 being cited. The bio-remediation work which was awarded for a huge cost of Rs 1,850 per cubic meter, has turned out to be a big fat hen
that lays golden egg,” he remarked.
