In one of the worst accidents in ordnance bases, 16 people, including two Army officers, a jawan and 13 civil firefighters, died in a massive fire at the Central Ammunition Depot (CAD) of the Army in Pulgaon, Maharashtra in the wee hours of Tuesday.
Seventeen people, including two Army officers, nine Army jawans and six civilian firefighters, were injured while trying to extinguish the fire that took place in one of the sheds of the Pulgaon depot where anti-tank mines were stored. Their condition was stated to be stable. The deceased officers were identified as lieutenant-Colonel RS Pawar and Major K Manoj. The Army has ordered a court of enquiry to ascertain the cause of the fire.
Eyewitnesses and military officials said loud explosions followed a massive fireball at one of the sheds at the CAD, which is India’s largest ordnance depot where ammunition with expired shelf life is also disposed. The depot recently won an award for using solar energy to dispose of expired ammunition.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and Army chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag flew to the site later in the day following a directive from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to review the situation. Parrikar was in Pune when he was asked to proceed to the site, which is 115 km from Nagpur.
Expressing grief over the incident, Modi tweeted, “Pained by loss of lives caused by a fire at Central Ammunition Depot in Pulgaon, Maharashtra. My thoughts are with the bereaved families. I pray that those who are injured recover quickly. Have asked RM @manoharparrikar to visit the spot & take stock of the situation.”
Talking to reporters after reviewing the situation at the depot, Parrikar said, “Sixteen people, including two Army officers and a jawan, sacrificed their lives and prevented the fire from spreading to nine other storage sheds which were located at distance of mere 100 to 200 meters from the affected shed. Had the fire spread to other ammunition storage sheds, there would have been more explosions.”
He also said the chances of sabotage behind the incident were very “remote”, adding “the enquiry instituted by the Army will establish the exact cause of the fire. But, preliminary investigations suggest that chances of sabotage are very remote.”
The Minister said, “The fire has been contained fully. However, there is still some smouldering. We are watching it carefully.”
“As much as 130 tonnes of material (anti-tank mines) blew up in the incident. Some of it was quite old and it was as good as discarded. As far as the loss is concerned, human loss is more. What is more important is that our 16 personnel sacrificed their lives to contain the fire to an area of 100 meters.”
Replying to a question, Parrikar said, “There is nothing more to worry about. The fire won’t spread. It has been controlled and contained to an area of 100 meters. Given that the depot is located on 9,000 hectares, the affected area is minimal.”
Parrikar said that some neighbouring sheds within the depot had suffered minor damage because of the impact of the explosions. “As far as the buildings in the neighbourhood are concerned, the explosions might have shattered window panes of the flats there. The residents who have suffered such damages can report the matter to the District Collector concerned. The grievances will be looked into,” the Minister said.
Giving details of the accident, Director-General of Military Operations (DGMO) lieutenant-General Ranbir Singh said in New Delhi, the fire started in one of the sheds at approximately 1.00 am on Tuesday. Immediate action was taken by firefighting teams and Quick Reaction Teams located in the depote to douse the fire as per standard operation procedures. These measures ensured that the fire was contained to one shed only which contained “highly sensitive” ammunition, he said adding the fire was now completed extinguished.
“However, in our efforts to douse the fire, two officers and 14 people including one Army jawan and 13 civilian firefighting staff lost their lives. Two officers and 15 personnel including nine Army Jawans and six civilian firefighting staff were injured. They were evacuated to Multi-Speciality Hospital, Wardha (35 km from Pulgaon) and their condition was stable,” Singh said.
The DGMO said the cause of fire was not yet ascertained and actions to assess the damage were in progress, adding a court of enquiry was also ordered. PTI reported from Pulgaon that hundreds of families of nearby villages were evacuated, officials said.
Terming the accident as “very unfortunate,” Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said he had spoken to Wardha Collector as the CAD is located in that district and instructed him to provide all help. Following the mishap, Fadnavis said in a Tweet: “News of fire at Central Ammunition Depot, Pulgaon is very unfortunate and disturbing. Spoke to Wardha Collector & took stock of the situation. Instructed Wardha Collector to provide all required help in this situation. Also asked Collectors of the neighbouring districts to be alert.”