A fire broke out in Halesi Bazaar on Sunday evening. The flames caused massive damage, estimated to be over Rs 75 million, burning down houses, hotels, and businesses.
The fire started around 7 pm at Padam Sher Rai’s gas shop. The blaze was brought under control by 10:30 pm after three and a half hours of hard work. Around 500 people, including personnel from the Nepal Army, Armed Police, Nepal Police, local officials, and residents, helped fight the fire.
Padam Sher Rai’s three-story wooden and corrugated house was completely destroyed. This building had a hardware store on the ground floor and an office of Nirdhan Utthan Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha on the second floor. The loss from this property was about Rs 40 million.
The fire also affected Airakh Rai’s New Kalyan Hotel. The four-story concrete hotel and a two-story wooden house behind it were badly damaged, with the estimated loss being Rs 25 million.
Halesi Darshan Hotel, owned by Prakash Chandra Giri, also saw some damage. The iron-truss kitchen and a two-story concrete building were partially destroyed. The total damage here was about Rs 3 million.
Another hotel, Paruhang Hotel, owned by Bharansher Rai, had its second and third floors of the four-story concrete building damaged, with a loss of Rs 5 million.
In total, the damage from the fire is believed to be around Rs 75 million. The authorities are still assessing the full extent of the loss.
