Major Fire Destroys Natural Gas Pipeline in Ambegaon Khurd

The pipeline passes through the Telco Colony area of Ambegaon Khurd in Pune.

SEATTLE (Oil Monster):   A major fire broke out inside a natural gas pipeline carrying liquefied natural gas in the Ambegaon Khurd area of Pune city on Tuesday. Central Pune fire brigade officials said that fire was brought under control quickly preventing damage to nearby property and infrastructure.

The fire brigade officials said that the fire was reported in the gas pipeline of Maharashtra Natural Gas Limited (MNGL) at 11.30 on Tuesday. The pipeline passes through the Telco Colony area of Ambegaon Khurd in Pune.

PMC fire chief Prashant Ranpise said, “The fire brigade control room received a call at 11.35 about the fire in the gas pipeline. We immediately deployed our fire tenders and reached the spot shortly and found intense flames were emanating from the point where leaking gas had caught fire. The fire was brought under control in thirty minutes.”

He further said “There are many buildings located in the area which include shops and small tenements which could have been damaged had we not got control of the blaze quickly. As a practice the gas pipelines are supposed to be underground but this one was almost at the surface and we have recommended an investigation in detail. The MNGL personnel arrived at the spot and we have briefed them about the incident. They have informed us that matter will be looked into. There was no casualty in the incident.”

The beginning of summer is marked by a rise in fire incidents with January, February and March 2021 having witnessed 123, 180 and 244 incidents of fire in Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) limits respectively. The city also saw three big fire incidents which destroyed properties worth crores of rupees and threw many a people out of business. A major fire broke out at Chhatrapati Shivaji Market and also at Fashion Street during last month. The reason behind Fashion Street fire is yet to be ascertained while the Shivaji Market was gutted due a short circuit. Both the incidents did not witness any casualty.

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com