PNB branch gutted in Panchkula’s Sector 8

A suspected short-circuit led to a fire on the first floor of Punjab National Bank in Sector 8 on Tuesday morning right before the branch was to open for the day.

A bank employee, the first one to step in, had flicked a switch on, when a spark ignited a fire. No one else was present in the building and the employee also managed to escape to safety, said fire officials.

The fire department was informed around 9.30 am, following which four fire tenders were pressed into service. It took firefighters 30 minutes to control the blaze. While several electronic items on the first floor were damaged, no bank documents or lockers were affected, the officials said.

On May 31, as many as 25 students of a coaching centre were rescued after a fire erupted in a building in Sector 16 of Panchkula, located within 1.5 km of the PNB branch.

Also triggered by a short-circuit in the meter box, the fire had engulfed the first floor of the building. The ensuing smoke enveloped the coaching institute on the second floor, causing panic among students, who had a difficulty breathing, and ran hither and thither to save themselves.