Kozhikode: Fishermen have reported of a loss of Rs 1.2 crore after a massive fire destroyed 27 sheds at the fish landing centre at Chaliyam here Monday night. However, authorities are unsure of the fisherfolk's eligibility for compensation as the makeshift sheds were on poramboke belonging to the Forest Department, part of its timber depot.
The fisherfolk have said boat engines, fish boxes, freezers and other equipment kept in the sheds were gutted in the fire. Besides, several street vendors, who relied on the sheds to store their goods, have also suffered losses.
The fire that broke out at 8.30 pm on Monday spread rapidly as the sheds were covered with plastic sheets. At least 3,000 plastic fish boxes, each of Rs 700, boat engines ranging from Rs 1 to 1.5 lakh and freezers of Rs 20,000 were destroyed in the fire. CP Sharafudheen, a wholesaler, lost 800 fish boxes.
“Apart from my 50 fish boxes, bundles of dress kept by a street vendor were also charred,” said K P Faizal, a local fisherman. Mamu from Feroke, the street vendor who relied on Faizal's shed to store his textiles has reported a loss of Rs 60,000-worth goods.
The Chaliyam Fish Landing Centre in the Kadalundi grama panchayat is near the estuary where the Chaliyar joins the Arabian Sea. According to fishermen, the government has not provided a facility for them to store their equipment.
Kerosene cans removed in time
At least 700 fibre boats venture out to sea daily from Chaliyam. As these fibe boats function with outboard motors that work on kerosene, the fish landing centre had a huge reserve of fuel at the time of the fire.
“The first thing we did was keep that area safe. That helped to avoid a big tragedy,” said Pramod Kumar, station officer from the Meenchantha Fire Station.
Four fire tenders from Meenchantha one from Tanur rushed to the spot to douse the fire in one-and-a-half hours. The Beypore Police, coastal police, fishermen, representatives of the Kadalundi grama panchayat and residents also joined in the operation.
The burning Banyan
There was a big banyan tree between the sheds, which was also on fire Monday night. A mobile unit from Meenchantha used 12,000 litres of water to douse the fire on the Banyan tree by night, but after midnight it was on fire again.
A second unit from Meenchantha arrived around 1 am and put out the fire after a three-hour effort. They used up 5,000 litres the second time. However, the decades-old tree was smoldering again in the morning and a fresh supply of 12,000 litres was sprayed between 10 am and 11.30 am. With the embers persisting, the District Collector ordered to cut it down.
