HARIPUR, Oct 23: A fire broke out in a unit of Dewan Salman Fibre in the Hattar Industrial Estate here on Sunday afternoon, damaging machinery and reducing to ashes about 4000 bales of polyester fibre ready for export. No loss of life has been reported.

Haripur city and the entire district remained without power as electricity supply from all the 11 feeders was disconnected following reports that the fire had damaged a power feeder.

Sources said that the fire engulfed unit No 6 of the Dewan Salman Fibre at around 3pm and spread to the godown, where it burnt 4,000 bales of polyester (hollow) fibre. One hollow fibre bale weighing 250kg is worth Rs25,000, it is stated. The fire also damaged the entire machinery worth Rs1.5 billion.

The sources said that the blaze damaged a high-powered transmission line which forced Pesco to disconnect electricity supply from the feeders to avert any further damage.

Fire-fighters were called from Wah Cantt, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Abbottabad, Havelian and Haripur to extinguish the blaze because the HIE fire brigade was unable to control the situation. It took three hours to douse the flames.

The sources said that some workers were cooking food for Iftar when some bales lying outside the godown caught fire. It engulfed the entire unit within no time.

Efforts to reach the management for comment could not succeed.