Four abandoned vans gutted in a fire near garbage dumping spot

Four vans in Tirupattur garage gutted in fire, suspected arson, police investigating, no injuries reported.

Four unused vans in an open garage in Sanankuppam village near Ambur town in Tirupattur district were gutted in a fire on Sunday.

Police said it was around 11.30 p.m, a few residents in the village saw smoke in the open garage, which had nearly 80 vehicles like lorries, trucks and minivans. They informed V.K Rajendran (5O), owner of the garage. Based on the alert, Ambur Town police rushed to the spot. A six-member firefighting team from Ambur town was roped into service.

“Fire would have been caused due to open burning of garbage near the garage. The unused vehicles were lying abandoned a few metres away from the spot where garbage was burnt,” said A. Mahboob Baig, station fire officer (Ambur).

Taking advantage of the holiday due to closure of the garage and other commercial establishments, police said some miscreants would have set fire to the accumulated garbage in the backyard of the garage. It resulted in the spread of the fire to the garage. Soaring temperatures in the region also accelerated fire that completely gutted the vehicles.

After more than two hours of struggle, fire fighters were able to douse the fire in the garage. A case has been registered by the police.