Fire at Haldia port, crane driver dies

One person died as a major fire broke out in a mobile harbour crane in Haldia dock of the Kolkata port on Saturday, an official said.

The fire was noticed in the mobile harbour crane on berth no 13 where coal unloading was taking place.

A mobile harbour crane driver could not come down due to the blaze and he was rescued when he jumped on a safety net below.

However, he succumbed to injuries after he was taken to hospital, Kolkata Port Trust Chairman Vinit Kumar told PTI.

The berth is managed by a private operator and these high value cranes are huge structures used to load and unload cargo at much faster rate than normal cranes, sources said.

Seven fire tenders of the port, fire services and other companies of Haldia brought the blaze under control by noon.

The cause of fire is not yet known but it has caused major damage, the official said.