A fire gutted a three-storey building on Netaji Bypass Road in Dharmapuri on Wednesday, forcing authorities to halt traffic on two major bypass stretches for nearly three-and-a-half hours and divert vehicles through several town roads.
The blaze erupted at the establishment owned by K Venkatachalam near the Pidamaneri road junction at around 4pm. Flames spread rapidly through the building, sending thick black smoke into the air and triggering panic among residents and motorists in the area.
Two fire tenders initially reached the site. A Dharmapuri town fire-station officer said firefighters brought the flames partially under control after nearly an hour, but the building continued to burn. Four additional fire tenders were then deployed to contain the fire. Municipal tankers supplied water during the firefighting operation.
The fire was brought under control by 7.30pm, according to the report. The source did not specify whether anyone was injured, the cause of the fire or the nature of the establishment operating from the building. Damage to surrounding properties was also not reported.
Traffic on the Dharmapuri-Salem and Salem-Dharmapuri stretches of the bypass came to a halt while emergency teams worked at the site. The disruption extended beyond the immediate fire location as vehicles were diverted and congestion built up across several roads in Dharmapuri town.
Dharmapuri town police erected barricades near Dharmapuri Government Medical College Hospital and Adhiyaman Government Boys Higher Secondary School to manage vehicle movement. Traffic congestion was reported on Sitha Veerappa Chetty Street, Arumugam Achari Street, Vakkil Street, Four Roads Junction, Mohammed Ali Club Road and SV Road.
The disruption also affected emergency movement. Two ambulances were caught in the gridlock near Rajagopal Park while traffic restrictions and diversions were in place. The incident highlighted the operational difficulty of keeping bypass traffic moving when a fire occurs close to a junction linking the town’s main routes.
Firefighters continued operations until the flames were brought under control, while police managed access and diversions around the affected stretch. The supplied report did not provide details of any subsequent inspection, investigation into the cause or assessment of the building’s structural condition.
