An electric substation at Narkatpally in Telangana's Nalgonda district caught fire after it was struck by lightning on Wednesday. The incident took place around 5:10 p.m. and the firefighters were rushed to the scene shortly after to defuse the fire, which was done in about 20 minutes after reaching the spot.

Firefighters bring situation under control

In a statement to The News Minute, Nalgonda Station Fire Officer Shyam Sundar Reddy said, "Around 5.10 pm we were alerted and our team, with a fire containment tanker, left for the spot. We reached by 5.40 pm and managed to control and put out the fire in about 20 minutes."

Fire truckFire truck
Fire truck [representational image]Pixabay

Eyewitnesses saw as many as six thunderbolts in the area, one of which hit the electrically-charged 33KV section of the sub-section, which triggered an explosion of the transformer causing the fire. The officer confirmed that the machinery, wires, and other material have all been damaged in the fire.

No casualties

District Assistant Fire Officer (DAFO) Shanmuka Rao confirmed to TNM that there were no casualties from the incident. But he said there could be a damage of Rs 10 lakh, but a final assessment is yet to be made.

Fire truck [representational image]
electric substation [representational image]pxhere

"The thunderbolt seems to be the reason for the accident. The teams have neutralized and controlled the fire in a very short time. As of now, no casualties or human loss has been reported."

The electric sub-station is located on the national highway on Narketpally. A loud noise was heard just as the fire erupted. A video captured by a passerby shows the massive fire at the station.