Bengaluru: A chemical-laden tanker travelling from Chennai to Mumbai caught fire on NICE Road after one of its tyres allegedly burst and the tanker toppled after allegedly brushing against a car, triggering a major firefighting operation and kilometre-long traffic jams Sunday.The fire continued to rage for over nine hours, with firefighters battling the blaze. The tanker was carrying around three barrels, two of which reportedly still contained chemicals, raising fears of a possible explosion.The incident happened around 500 metres away from Kanakapura Road toll on NICE Road. Fire and emergency officials received an alert about the incident around 12.30pm.The officials initially pressed two water tankers and four water bowsers into service. As the fire couldn’t be contained for hours, they deployed foam tankers. By 8pm, fire personnel had used 500 litres of foam, but the fire still could not be completely doused.District fire officer KV Manjunath said they were yet to ascertain what chemical was the tanker carrying. The driver was being questioned by police. Since the chemicals were stored in barrels inside the tanker, it was difficult to douse the fire.No casualties were reported in the incident. However, the blaze caused major traffic snarls on both sides of NICE Road. Vehicles heading towards the city from the Anjanapura side were stuck in a jam stretching around 5km, while traffic moving out of the city was affected for nearly 3km. By 6pm, officials had managed to ensure a smooth traffic flow for vehicles moving out of the city. Talaghattapura police of the south division are investigating.Hotel fire near MajesticIn a separate incident, a fire broke out at a hotel near Majestic after gas leaked from an LPG cylinder and caught fire.A water tanker rushed to the spot and helped bring the blaze under control before it could spread. The incident happened at Nandini Cafe Sunday afternoon. Upparpet police are investigating.
