Fire destroys over 100 shops in Delhi's Chandni Chowk wholesale market

The wholesale market of the Bhagirath Palace neighbourhood in Chandni Chowk was completely destroyed by a major fire that occurred on Friday, authorities said. Cooling efforts are now being made, but about 100 shops were destroyed. According to them, no injuries have yet been reported. During the firefighting operations, five significant structures were reportedly impacted, three of which fell.

40 fire tenders were dispatched to the scene after the fire department received a call about it at 9:19 p.m. on Thursday.
22 fire tenders are currently working to cool the area down as the fire has been extinguished after more than 12 hours, according to a fire department official. According to officials, the fire started in one of the Mahalaxmi Market's electrical appliance-related shops and quickly spread to others that were close by.

The noxious stench of burning rubber and plastic clouded the air as white smoke billowed high into the sky. "Fire is under control," said Atul Garg, director of the Delhi Fire Service, to PTI. Currently, 22 fire fighters are engaged in cooling operations. It is yet unknown what started the fire. As soon as the fire was reported, the NDRF, MCD, and reserve police force raced to the scene, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi.

According to the fire officials, carrying out fire-fighting operations was extremely difficult due to the unstable structures, water deficit, and limited roads.

Fire near Chandni Chowk, Garg had tweeted on Thursday. A total of 40 fire trucks and more than 200 fire men were sent into action. The building began to collapse due to poor structures, a water scarcity, and a tight lane. At the same time, Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, expressed sorrow over the event and said he is gathering information from the relevant district government.