SWABI: Four tobacco kilns were destroyed in separate fire incidents here on Thursday.

Each kiln cost around Rs1 million, according to owners.

They insisted that after kiln destruction, tobacco curing had become extremely difficult to the misery of growers.

Rescue official Luqman Khan told Dawn that a fire broke out in Samad Khan’s kiln in Zakaria Shakh area and firefighters immediately reached there but the fire had engulfed the entire kiln by then.

He said Mohsin Khan’s tobacco kiln was gutted in Shahida Dagai area of Razaar tehsil.

Officials said it was a far-flung area, so firefighters took time to get there to find residents struggling to control the fire.

They said the workers prevented the fire from spreading to other kilns and a nearby warehouse.

The officials said a fire broke out in Ghulam Hassan’s kiln in Shah Dheri village.

They said firefighters reached there and brought the fire under control but failed to protect the Virginia tobacco leaves, which were being cured.

Also, the kiln of Ahmad Khan was destroyed by a fire.

Growers said kiln destruction meant a very difficult time for them as it brought the entire tobacco curing process to a complete halt.

They said as other kilns were busy curing tobacco, they couldn’t be spared for a single day.

Meanwhile, a medical store was burgled in Shahmansoor town on Wednesday night, said its owner.

He said burglars took away cash and other valuables from the store, located near the Bacha Khan Teaching Hospital and Zaida police station.

The police visited the premises and collected evidence as part of the investigation.

Published in Dawn, May 30th, 2025