Date: October 14, 2023
Location: Perumbavoor, Kerala (India)
Address: Rubber Park in Irapuram
Type: Dust Fire
Fuel: Wood Dust
Industry: Plywood Manufacturing (Wood Processing)
Equipment: Electronic Panel Board
Company: No Details
Database Incidents: None Recorded
Loss: No Injuries
Capital Cost: Unknown
Status: Open
Confirmation: Unconfirmed
Company Description:
The company, a plywood factory in Perumbavoor, India, was not identified in any press coverage of the incident.
Incident Description:
On October 14, 2023, The Hindu reported a fire at a plywood factory in Perumbavoor, India.
The Pattimattom fire station received the first call for help around 5:00 a.m. It soon became clear that the fire was too large for a single station to handle, leading to a call for backup from across the district. The fire is believed to have started in the electronic panel board, disrupting the circuit breaker system and leading to a loss of fire protection capabilities. The fire was further fueled by short circuits, leading to the failure of all motors and the generator.
The facility, which operates continuously with a limited workforce, saw the fire primarily damage its central processing area, where machinery suffered more than the finished products. The wood dust present made the firefighting process particularly challenging due to its combustibility and resistance to water.
The main fire was brought under control by 9:00 a.m., but complete extinguishing took several more hours. It involved the manual task of emptying a drier tank to remove the burning material.
Close to 100 firefighters and 18 fire tenders from multiple fire stations, including Perumbavoor, Angamaly, and Aluva.
No injuries were reported.
Sources:
The Hindu
