Smoke engulfs Kochi as Brahmapuram waste plant fire continues to burn on Day 2

Kochi: A major fire that broke out at Kochi-based Brahmapuram waste treatment plant a day ago continues to burn despite efforts by the city's Fire and Rescue Services to douse the blaze, officials said.

A total of 16 pumping units and six JCBs have been deployed to bring the fire under control, the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, officials said. "The fire started last evening and we tried to douse the fire yesterday itself. Now we are separating the waste with JCB to prevent the fire from spreading to more places. Along with that, we are trying to douse the fire by cooling it down. This will happen more effectively if there are more JCBs," Sateeshan, the Chief Fire Officer said.
He further told reporters that it is the sixth year in a row that the waste plant has caught fire.

Yesterday, the fire spread further to the east, the fire official said stating that in the absence of rain the waste is dry and made the situation grave.

Earlier it was possible to use water in the rivers. Now it can't. There is a delay due to the situation of bringing water from outside.
"The fire is expected to be brought under control by Friday evening or we will try to bring as many areas as possible under control. There are enough units here, we are bringing pumping units and JCBs in use, this is a herculean task," Sateeshan said. (ANI)