Fire at parking lot chars 42 bikes

Residents of Vighnaharta society near Currey Road, woke up to loud explosions in their parking lot on Monday morning. They soon found out that the motorbikes in their parking lot were on fire.

Before the fire brigade personnel could reach the spot, 42 two-wheelers, two cars and a few bicycles were charred. Suspecting foul play, the Kalachowkie police officials have started looking for the culprit.

The blaze was brought under control by the fire brigade between 6 am and 7 am. Apart from the vehicles in the society’s parking lot, others that were parked outside the building also suffered damage. The incident took place between 5 am and 6 am sources from the police said. An unidentified miscreant is responsible for setting the vehicles on fire, said a police officer, on the condition of anonymity.

Secretary of Vighnaharta society Sanjay Gurav said, “We do not know who set fire in the parking lot. Most of the two wheelers were new and it is a serious threat that someone came inside our parking lot within the society and did this.” He then added, “My flat is on the second floor. The loud explosions woke me up. I stepped out of the flat to see check on what had happened and I saw the bikes burning. Immediately, a few of us tried pulling away some of the bikes, but it was too late. They were already damaged in the fire.”

A police officer from Kalachowkie station said, “We have checked footage from security cameras at places in the area. In all the cases, one person is seen, setting fire to the bikes.” He further added, “We suspect that the accused pulled out external fuel pipes of the motorcycles that resulted in leakage of petrol from the tanks. The vehicles were then set on fire by igniting the leaked petrol. The fire must have spread from one vehicle to the other.”