Major fire guts century-old Shimla building

Major fire guts century-old Shimla building
Express News Service

Shimla, Feb 11: A major portion of the century-old Railway Board building, one of the surviving landmarks of the days of Raj, was gutted in a devastating fire yesterday. Though fire tenders were trying hard to tame the blaze, they were helpless before a strong wind fanning the flames. Thick layers of paint made their job even more difficult.

The 1897 building, one of the finest example of the hill architect, caught fire at about 6.30 pm on Saturday. According to eyewitnesses, the fire spread very fast and engulfed the top floor of the building.

They further said that fire tenders reached the spot late at about 7 pm despite the fact that the building was merely half a kilometre away from the fire office.

Over a dozen state and Central government offices -- including the ones of Central Bureau of Investigation, Sales Tax, Income Tax, Central Public Works, State Public Works and Auditor General -- were housed in the building.