A massive fire broke out early Sunday morning (November 23) in the Chappanahal Tea Garden area under Udharbond, Cachar, completely gutting a residential house and a grocery shop. The blaze, which started around 5 AM at the residence of local resident Nazrul Islam, triggered widespread panic across the neighbourhood.
According to locals, the fire spread rapidly, engulfing both the house and the shop within minutes. Fire & Emergency Services and police alerted immediately, but by the time help arrived, the structure had already reduced to ashes. Residents alleged that despite being located just 3–4 km away, the fire brigade reached nearly two hours late, forcing villagers to douse the flames themselves using water drawn from a nearby well.
Nazrul Islam, who lost all belongings in the incident, described the horrifying moments:
“I heard a noise from my shop, and suddenly people were shouting ‘Fire! Fire!’ I rushed out to see the entire shop burning. It was around 5 AM. I woke my children and took them outside. By the time I went toward the shop, everything already engulfed. Our goods, refrigerator, inverter, the newly stocked godown—everything is gone. Even our documents and a donation box for the local mosque burned down. We are three brothers, and all our wives’ gold ornaments and valuables worth ₹20–30 lakh, including rice and paddy, have been destroyed.”
He added that locals made over 100 calls to the fire brigade but received no response. “They reached 2 hours late. Had our villagers not fetched water from the well, nearby houses would also have caught fire,” he alleged.
The affected family—three brothers Akbar Ali, Ajgar Ali, and Nazrul Islam—lived together as a joint family of 12 members. Several of them sustained burn injuries. All furniture, grocery stock, gold ornaments, official documents, and stored goods completely destroyed, with losses amounting to several lakhs.
While a short circuit suspected to be the cause, angry locals confronted fire brigade personnel upon their delayed arrival, initially asking them to leave since the blaze already under control. Udharbond Police later reached the spot and helped pacify the situation.
A detailed assessment of the total damages is currently underway.