Fire at Humayun Mahal building

Chennai: In a second incident in two weeks involving a heritage structure, fire broke out in the 246-year-old Humayun Mahal, part of the Indo-Saracenic Chepauk palace, near Triplicane, on Saturday, ravaging portions of it.

The building was used by the department of agriculture until 2007, when they vacated, leaving behind machinery and paper waste. These are suspected to be the cause of the fire.
According to the TN fire and rescue services (TNFRS), seven fire tenders were pressed into service and it took an hour to bring the fires under control.

Police sources said they suspect that some anti-social elements could have entered a room on the ground floor and lit a match that could have started the fire. The building, however, is not new to such incidents. In September last year, a 500 sq foot roof of the building, then used by the state women’s commission after the agriculture department vacated, caved in, much to the shock of the employees.

In another fire, on January 16, 2012, the Khalas Mahal, another part of Chepauk palace, was ravaged and it led to the death of a fireman. Recently, on July 12, a major fire broke out at the iconic State Bank of India building on Rajaji Salai, near Parry’s Corner.

DC CORRESPONDENT | July 27, 2014, 04.07 am IST