Major tragedy averted

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: There won't be a Dinesh every time to alert the Fire and Rescue Services personnel when fire breaks out near railway tracks. A major tragedy was averted on Sunday owing to the timely intervention of  this passerby who informed the Firemen after seeing smoke coming out from near the Railway Overbridge, Thampanoor. Soon, the Fire and Rescue personnel from the Chengalchoola unit arrived on the spot and contained the fire in ten minutes.  The electric line lying closely to the place where the fire broke out escaped from being affected following the intervention of the Firemen. The warning message in three languages on display over the iron fence near the Overbridge, Thampanoor, cautions of a 25,000-volt electric line passing over the railway line.  It was near this line that the fire broke out on Sunday around 10.45 am.  The place which has turned a garbage dumping site for litterbugs caught fire maybe due to somebody accidentally throwing a lighted cigarette over the garbage. Though City Express contacted the Southern Railway authorities, none was aware of the incident that happened right under their noses. The Railway Protection Force (RPF), when contacted, had not even heard of the incident that had occurred near the Trivandum Central Railway Station. As directed by an RPF official, the office of Duty Station Master at the station was contacted. The reply was somehow similar to what the RPF gave, that they had not  ''saw even smoke billowing out of the place.” The official admitted that he did not see or hear of the incident. Still, he remembered to throw up a witty remark.  ''After the fumes of Valakom incident are off, you saw another smoke emanating from here?” According to the owner of a  shop nearby, ''we could not imagine what would have happened if the fire was not doused on time. A wall must be immediately constructed here, to prevent people from throwing waste.” From worn out footwear to empty sachets of pickle and shampoo, a variety of garbage can be seen dumped on the spot amid the charred remains. The fire has also consumed a portion of dried up creepers lying over the fence near the bridge.