KOPPAL: A family of four was lucky to escape unscathed after a major fire, caused by a LPG cylinder blast in a neighbouring hotel, engulfed their house and several other shops near Mahaveer Circle in Gangavathi in the wee hours on Wednesday.
A LPG cylinder blast at a hotel, suspected to be due to an electrical short circut, burnt down the hotel, a hair dresser salon, a fruit stall and a house. The family of Hulaganna Medar was awakened by the constant barking of their pet dog and rushed out of the house, thereby saving their lives.
The family was awakened by the constant barking of their pet dog Daisy and had come to check if there was a theft. Though glad that they are alive, the family faces tough days ahead, having lost everything. “We couldn’t retrieve anything as the fire was so intense. We lost all our documents and cash”, Hulaganna said.
After the cylinder exploded in the hotel, the blaze spread to other shops and Hulaganna’s house. Except for the clothes on their person, everything else in their house was charred. However, they had managed to remove a LPG cylinder from their house.
When the fire broke out initially, a woman who lives opposite one of the shops and the owner of one of the shops tried to put out the fire with a hosepipe and buckets of water. But when the LPG cylinder exploded in the hotel, the fire quickly spread to three shops and a house and the two sustained burn injuries.
The Fire and Emergency Services personnel later arrived and put out the blaze, but it had already causd damage to the tune of lakhs by then.