It was a normal clear
Wednesday morning,
the 9th of May 2012 and I woke up early to start a new day which unfortunately started on a choky note with the dustbin near my house burning in huge leaps of flame at around 8.30 am., thanks to the miscreant who I can surely say was not from the residential colony, St Anthony’s college, Lower Lachaumiere but someone from the neighbourhood.
This dustbin, at the entrance of the St. Anthony’s College campus back gate, at Hopkinson road, is a relief for the residents staying inside who dump their wastes in it.
Many people from the neighbourhood also used the waste bin.
Many visitors termed the dustbin as an eyesore which was placed at the entrance ‘of the beautiful campus’. But its questionable existence had some purpose which went ignored and unnoticed.
Coming back to the fateful morning, the fire spread immediately on the fibre roof and then on the different wires- phone, television cables,etc., which were hanging on top of the roof . The landlines immediately got disconnected.
Our first thought was to call for the fire tenders but the idea was dropped as it was peak school hours and an already filled tanker would take at least 15-20 minutes to reach the spot which would have left only burnt heap for the firemen to douse.
The fire was a major concern because our quarter, although separated by a wall, was close to the dustbin and hence under the immediate threat of being embraced by the leaping flames.
Prioritising things, we put off the main switch and the gas cylinder and rushed to the spot. Residents rushed and collectively helped in controlling the fire. Yet, the cables were burning as they were difficult to reach. Gradually, with the help of everyone, the fire was extinguished.The State Government has spent time and money to organise disaster management programmes.Learning some simple survival skills by attending such functions proved to be helpful.
A lesson that all of us learnt that day was that unity in such an emergency situation is rewarding and a bit of courage to face disaster coupled with intelligent functioning at the local level can go a long way to save life and property. (The contributor Afrid Ahmed is a student of All Saints’ Diocesan Higher Secondary School)