HYDERABAD: After the early Sunday’s fire accident at the iconic Secunderabad Club in the city, which had reduced a major portion of the main premises to ashes, the Telangana State Disaster Response and Fire Services Department launched a Statewide drive to check fire safety compliances in establishments. On Monday, special teams inspected 23 clubs and 356 theatres across Telangana.
Once the inspections are completed and the violations are identified, action will be initiated against all the violating establishments. Meanwhile, the Fire Department is also gearing up to register a case against the Secunderabad Club in connection with the fire as a preliminary probe had found that the club had neglected fire safety measures, which led to the large-scale destruction of the 144-year-old heritage structure.
The probe revealed several lapses in fire safety and other safety measures in the club and found that the management had not obtained requisite safety permissions from the concerned departments and this lapse had resulted in the major fire accident.
Senior officials from the Fire Department say that they have come to a prima facie conclusion that the fire originated in the first floor of the three-storeyed building. The first floor houses the offices of the club president and secretary, and also the administration and IT wing.
While it is suspected that fire broke out from the electronic appliances in the IT wing and later spread to the other parts of the building, the exact cause of the fire is yet to be established by the investigators. The Police Department, which is also investigating the fire, have written to the Fire and Electricity departments seeking information on the cause of fire and other details related to the incident.