Thiruvanmiyur flat of US couple gutted

CHENNAI: A sudden fire broke out in a house at a residential colony in Thiruvalluvar Nagar at Thiruvanmiyur on Sunday evening.
The fire was confined to the second floor of an apartment building on New Beach Road. The incident occurred when the occupants of the house, an American couple, were taking an evening stroll on the beach.
"We were alerted about the fire when Thenmozhi, who works in the building as a domestic help, saw the sparks while she was folding clothes on the terrace.We immediately called up the fire department and also telephoned the inhabitants of the house. They came rushing back," said K Gopalakrishnan , a resident of the building.
After alerting the fire department personnel, residents moved out on to the street by which time the intensity of the blaze had increased.
"The fire engines were a little delayed. They came about 20 minutes after we made the call as they were confused about the street and went to another road with the same name. However, once they arrived, they put out the fire within a couple of minutes," Gopalakrishnan added.
According to senior fire officer Nagappan from the Thiruvanmiyur fire station, the blaze was caused by a short-circuit in a laptop which caught on to the curtains.
"Since the residents noticed the fire early and immediately alerted us, we were able to put out the blaze in time. This also ensured that it did not spread to other parts of the building. One fire tender from the fire station at Thiruvanmiyur was rushed to the spot. The officers put out the blaze within five minutes," he said.
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