New Delhi: A major fire broke out inside a shoe factory in Outer Delhi’s Narela on Friday. It was brought under control after nine hours of firefighting by nearly 90 personnel.According to officials, the factory was operating without a no-objection certificate (NOC).No injuries have been reported so far.The fire department said they received information about the blaze around 7.45 am. Twenty-four fire tenders were rushed to the site in the Bhorgarh industrial area. The operation was led by deputy chief fire officer Abhilash Kumar Malik.A senior fire officer said the unit manufactured components used in shoes, such as soles.The building had a ground-plus-two-floor structure along with a basement.
All the floors were heavily stocked with raw materials, finished goods, machinery and packaging material, which was an extremely high fire load.“The factory did not have an NOC and had only one escape route, and no fire-fighting equipment inside,” AK Malik said. He said the limited evacuation path posed a challenge to firefighters, while the presence of highly combustible materials acted as a catalyst, causing the fire to spread rapidly across the building.
A DFS official said the intensity of the blaze was aggravated by the dense accumulation of rubber, foam, adhesives, and packaging material used in the manufacturing process. This led to thick smoke and extreme heat, severely affecting visibility and slowing down firefighting operations.Another challenge was the structural connectivity of the building. On the second floor, an open gate linked the factory to adjoining structures, raising fears that the fire could spread to neighbouring units too.However, timely intervention by multiple fire teams prevented the flames from extending beyond the affected premises. “The fire had almost reached adjacent buildings through the connecting passage on the second floor, but it was contained in time,” an officer said.Videos of the incident show thick smoke coming out of the factory.Police will investigate the cause of the fire. The factory belongs to a resident of Pitampura.
