HYDERABAD: A fire broke out on the first floor of the under-construction Secretariat building here in the early hours of Friday, sending the officials through the hoops as its inauguration is slated for February 17, the birthday of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.
The fire services department is yet to ascertain the cause of the fire but it has come to the conclusion that it started in the storeroom where wood and plastic materials werre stored. Fortunately, there were no casualties. The fire mishap had a jarring effect on the officials as the Secretariat which has been named after BR Ambedkar, is very close to the heart of the Chief Minister.
The police and the fire services personnel rushed to the spot on receipt of the information and began the fire-fighting operations to prevent it from spreading to other floors.
The workers noticed thick plumes of smoke emanating from the building at about 3 am and alerted the in-charge who in turn called the police and fire services. Ten fire tenders were rushed to the building and three more joined them a little later.
Fire Services Director General Nagi Reddy visited the building and personally supervised the fire-fighting operations. He found that some wooden and plastic material were gutted. Property loss, if any, is yet to be assessed.