Fire breaks out in parked vehicles near Mahakumbh Mela; no injuries

The fire is believed to have been triggered by extreme heat due to the large number of vehicles parked for the ongoing Mahakumbh Mela

A fire erupted in two parked vehicles on the main road leading to the Mahakumbh Mela in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj on Saturday morning. The blaze prompted authorities to dispatch several fire tenders to the scene, bringing the situation under control swiftly.

 

No one was injured in the incident, police confirmed. 

  “We received information that a fire broke out in a Maruti Ertiga car at around 6:30 am. Six fire brigades and water tenders were sent immediately, and the fire was controlled. No one was harmed in the fire,” said Vishal Yadav, an officer with UP Fire Services, speaking to PTI.

 

Yadav attributed the fire to extreme heat caused by the large number of vehicles parked for the Mahakumbh Mela, the world’s largest spiritual gathering, which is currently drawing millions of devotees to Prayagraj.

 

Previous fire incident at Mahakumbh Mela site

 

This incident comes just a week after another fire broke out at the Mahakumbh venue on January 19. The blaze, allegedly caused by a cylinder explosion, swept through the Gita Press camp, burning 70 to 80 huts and eight to 10 tents, according to Vivek Chaturvedi, Additional District Magistrate (ADM) of the Mahakumbh Mela.

 

National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams, led by DIG MK Sharma, acted swiftly to contain the fire. Four teams worked in unison to bring the situation under control.

 

Reacting to the recurring incidents, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav urged authorities to take immediate action to prevent such accidents in the future.

 

Mahakumbh Mela: 102 million devotees take holy dip

 

Despite the fire incidents, the Mahakumbh Mela continues to draw record-breaking crowds. By Friday evening, over 4.876 million devotees had thronged the sacred Sangam in Prayagraj to take a holy dip.

 

So far, more than 102 million people have taken a holy dip since the event commenced. Over 1 million ‘Kalpwasis’ are currently camping at the Sangam.

 

The state government, which estimates that this Mahakumbh will welcome over 450 million visitors, celebrated the milestone of 100 million bathers achieved earlier this week.