UPPER DIR, Dec 8: At least 120 shops, a government primary school and a mosque were gutted in a fire at the Barikot bazaar of district Dir Upper late Sunday night, locals said.

However, police claimed that 65 shops were burnt in the incident. Fire broke out apparently due to short circuit in a shop that engulfed the adjacent wooden shops, reducing all of them to ashes. The shop owners claimed the inferno inflicted losses worth millions of rupees, but officials were yet to collect details of the damages.

The officials of police station Kalkot said the bazaar consisted of 65 shops and all of them were burnt as no fire brigade vehicle could reach the spot as the lone bridge linking Barikot to Dir Khas had collapsed a few days ago and all kinds of traffic had been blocked for the last many days. However, local people rushed to the spot to control the fire but they failed in their efforts.

According to locals nothing could be saved in the incident as majority of the buildings were made of wood, adding there was no fire fighting equipment or staff to put out the fire which continued till 10am on Monday.

They also contradicted the number of shops gutted and said that 120 shops had been destroyed by the blaze.