Fire breaks out at clothing store in Pelawatte

Friday, 12 October 2018 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Nuwan Senarathna

A fire that erupted at a leading clothing store in Pelawatte, Battaramulla was put out by the Fire Brigade and Sri Lanka Air Force with strenuous effort yesterday.

The fire engulfed the clothing store last morning at around 11:10 and was extinguished after six hours of heavy firefighting by 50 firefighters and Sri Lanka Air Force officers.

Kotte Fire Control Unit Fire Officer S.T.M. Wijesekara told Daily FT that they were informed of a massive fire at a clothing store in Pelawatte around 11:10 in the morning, following which the department had dispatched two units from the Kotte Municipal Council. “As we were informed that the fire was difficult to be doused with the two fire engines dispatched immediately, another five units from Colombo Municipal Council (CMC), two units from Sri Lanka Air Force and one unit from Dehiwala Municipal Council were sent to Pelawatte. A total of 50 fire fighters helped to douse the fire after much effort,” he added.

Sri Lanka Air Force Spokesman Group Captain Gihan Seneviratne said a Bell 212 helicopter carrying a Bambi bucket with a capacity of around 1,000 litres hovered over the building for one hour and 20 minutes in efforts to douse the fire.

Police Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekara said the cause of the fire was not ascertained and Thalangama Police Station had commenced an investigation into the incident.