HYDERABAD: As the CID has more or less come to the conclusion that negligence in replacing the batteries and failing to use the fire safety equipment had led to the conflagration in the hydel power station on the left bank of Krishna river at Srisailam, the officials are preparing to transfer the FIR, issued by the local police immediately after the incident, to Hyderabad for further investigation.
After the deadly fire killed nine people on August 20, the local police registered a case under section 174 of the CrPC in which they had suspected negligence in fitting the batteries as the cause of fire.
During the course of investigation by the CID, it was revealed that the staff working in the tunnel, in which the hydel station was set up, have failed in taking fire safety measures, leading to the death of the employees. Interestingly, the hydel station had necessary equipment to deal with any kind of fire but the staff there, in the confusion that ensued, failed to use it properly when the fire broke out and when it grew in intensity, they could not control it.
“We are now reasonably certain that negligence led to the occurrence of short circuit that led to fires. The staff had panicked as flames began spreading in all directions. They ran away from the place but some of them fell unconscious and died after breathing in toxic fumes that filled the entire passage,” a source said.
The CID is also looking at possible malfunction of the machinery but they are yet to get evidence. “We will probe further. We have recorded the statements of the staff and we are putting two and two together to arrive at conclusions,” the source said.