Kochi: The air in Brahmapuram has become nearly clear by Monday afternoon as the firefighters have managed to almost fully extinguish the fire that raged in the solid waste processing plant here since March 2. The presence of smoke in the atmosphere has decreased considerably as most of the fire has been put out.
The attempts to extinguish the fire are nearing completion. The last phase of the attempts to douse is now on in two of the seven sectors in the vast dumping yard.
The authorities clarified that the smoke and fire in the other sectors too had subsided completely. In contrast to the situation on Monday morning, the presence of smoke in the atmosphere recorded a marked decrease later in the day.
In a social media post on Monday morning Ernakulam District Collector N S K Umesh said "the flames in Brahmapuram have almost completely been doused. The entire plant was divided into seven sectors, of which five are now completely under control due to the efforts of the firefighting team. The fire and smoke in the remaining sectors will largely be under control after today."
At present, 18 units of the Fire and Rescue Services are at the site. Sixteen Home Guards and 57 Civil Defence Force personnel too are on the ground in addition to the 98 Fire and Rescue personnel. Four persons each from the police department and health department are also present at the plant.
Three high pressure pumps and 20 excavators are being used to put out the fire. The operations are being carried out in an intensive manner under the leadership of the Fire and Rescue Services with the aim of completing the operation as soon as possible.
