LAHORE, Nov 10: Packing paper, paper role and manufactured tissue worth millions were reduced to ashes when a fire broke out in the storage section of Packages Limited on Walton Road early on Thursday.

A Rescue 1122 team was battling the fire, which erupted around 4:30am, till the filing of the report. No casualty was reported in the incident.

Factory Area SHO Mehdi Hassan Kazmi told Dawn that the fire erupted in the tissue-manufacturing section, which also engulfed the packing and storage sections.

He said the fire-fighters took part in the emergency operation the whole day. He said at least a dozen employees were in the section at the time of the incident, adding it was yet to ascertain how the fire erupted.

He said an investigation into the fire would be carried out to determine if it was the result of a short-circuit, cigarette or due to some other reason.

However, a Rescue 1122 official said the fire erupted in the warehouse of the unit because of unknown reason. According to the management, no employee was present at the time of the incident.

He said it was surprising for the rescuers that as to why Packages Limited, which had its own state-of-the-art fire-extinguishing equipment, did not use their own team before the Rescue 1122 fire-tenders arrived the scene.

The official said the factory had sufficient number of hydrants, three cover generators, a huge quantity of water and a fire team led by a fire officer. He said at least 14 fire vehicles of Rescue 1122 took part in the operation.

The official further said the factory management expressed ignorance about the cause of fire and the use of their own equipment.

In another incident, a trolley loaded with rice caught fire at Ravi Toll Plaza on Thursday, burning down valuables worth Rs500,000.

Jehangir said his trolley was partially burnt but the rice was completely damaged.

BODY FOUND: Ichhra police found the body of a 25-year-old man in the canal on Thursday.

The police said it was difficult to establish how the man died as police investigators neither spotted any marks of bruises nor any signs of violence on the body.