Kilinochchi fire:

Police rule out foul play

By Maneshka Borham

Fire ripped through around 125 temporary trading stalls in the Kilinochchi town on Friday night.

Kilinochchi Police say that no foul play was suspected in the fire that ripped through around 125 temporary trading stalls in the town´s public fair on Friday night.

A source from the Kilinochchi Police told the Sunday Observer that Scene of Crime Officers (SOCO) of the Police are carrying out investigations into the incident and the fire appears to have been caused by an electrical short circuit.

The police with the assistance of the Army and local residents doused the fire completely by yesterday morning.

Police sources claim the fire which erupted around 9 p.m., fully consumed around 75 shops that had been set up to sell fruits, textiles and various other items while more than 50 shops were partially destroyed. The fire is said to have spread rapidly due to the prevailing windy and dry weather in the area, which in turn hampered the efforts to bring the fire under control.

No lives were reportedly lost in the incident, while the cost of the damage caused by the fire has been calculated as Rs. 225 million by the Kilinochchi Divisional Secretariat. According to sources, the traders had set up shop in 2009, following the end of the war, and had previously requested for permanent structures including shops from the authorities but to no avail.