It was a bad day for Ramakrishnan who runs a tea shop in Mylapore near Sai Baba Temple.
As customers snacked here at lunch time, a fire broke out in the kitchen here.
People who were around there attempted to douse the fire but could not succeed as the fire engulfed the shop .
The area is owned by the temple and Ramakrishnan has rented this space for his business for the past three years .
What caused the fire?
Since the gas stove and electrical switches were close to each other, the fire spread fast. But the cause is vague.
A fire service engine that arrived late, some 30. minutes after the fire broke out, did what best was left to do. Fortunately, the fire did not spread to the row of shops hugging the temple wall.
Ramakrishnan said he has not insured his shop and he is in a big shock.
But it is not clear if his cooking space was secure and safe.
There are many pavement-encroached food joints in the Mylapore zone which place gas cylinders on pavements and cook in the open; these pose real dangers to people.
– By Baskar Seshadri and K R Jambunathan
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