CM for probe into fire service lapses

SHILLONG: A day after the Church of God at Qualapatty was gutted in a devastating fire which also led to the death of an elderly couple, the Chief Minister, Conrad Sangma on Monday said he would seek a report to know whether there was any negligence or delay on the part of the state fire service.
“If there was any kind of negligence, then this has to be inquired immediately. I was briefed by the deputy commissioner of East Khasi Hills that people were saying that this kind of issue could have been lesser if the fire service people reacted on time. I will ask for a report since it is a serious matter,” Conrad said while speaking to reporters.
He also said that it is more important to ensure that such lapse should not happen in the future.
The chief minister said it would not be appropriate for him to respond to the issue without speaking to the officials concerned. “Let me find out the facts as to what has happened. I will find out and get a detailed report on this issue,” Conrad said.
Chairman of the church committee Alphons Myrthong said on Monday that he had called up six times but there was no response from the fire service. “Moreover, we also called up Lumdiengjri police station and finally, we had to send our church driver to the fire service station”, he said.
Fire station reveals difficulties
However, a senior official with the fire service said that no call came to the fire service number on Sunday early morning hours.
The official said another hindrance to the fire service to start its operations was narrow roads and parked vehicles on the road leading to the church.
Shortage of manpower, fire tenders and equipment are other hurdles.
The official added that an internal investigation by the fire service was on to find out whether there was any negligence.
“We are inquiring into the allegations to clear the doubts in the minds of people”, the official added.
Earlier, Rangbah Shnong of Qualapatty, Martamlin Pyrbot had blamed the delay of the fire service for the loss of two lives in the fire incident. “We will convene a meeting within this week to discuss on the future course of action to ensure that similar incidents do not happen again; to make sure that public service agencies respond to the need of the citizens,” said the Rangbah Shnong.
“If we have to write to the chief minister also to get the government’s attention, we will do it. We will decide all this in the meeting,” Pyrbot added.
Similarly, the local residents had also blamed the delay of the fire service for the death of two persons. “This happened because of the negligence of the fire service. Because they did not reach on time, the fire spread to the house of those people who lost their lives,” one of the local residents had stated.
Conrad also visited the church and met the members of the bereaved family.
He said it was saddening to see what happened.
“What had happened is very unfortunate. It is a great loss not only to the church and the believers. It is a loss for Shillong city and the state as a whole,” he said.
Mukul visits site
CLP leader Mukul Sangma visited the church and met functionaries of Church of God on Monday evening.
Speaking to reporters, Mukul said the devastation has caused irreparable loss.
“We lost precious lives too. The church has a history and legacy attached to it. The challenge is to rebuild the church. As Christians, we belong to the same family. Through collective endeavour, we hope that the church will be rebuilt”, he said.