A fire broke out due to a suspected leakage in an oil pipeline passing through a land owned by the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) in Wadala in central Mumbai, but no one was injured.
Fifteen fire tenders and 12 water tankers eventually doused the flames after a five-hour fight around 11pm. There were no casualties.
Sources said the flames were spreading fast in the evening because of the strong monsoon winds blowing from the southwest. Dark smoke could be seen from up to 7km away in Lower Parel.
The fire began at 5:50 pm. "An oil leakage was detected this morning and we had taken all the necessary precautions. But at 6 PM, we were informed of a fire," MbPT chairman RM Parmar said. He added that no casualties have been reported in the incident so far.
Huge plumes of smoke were seen billowing from the spot, located near a Castrol Lubricant Technology Centre, from a long distance and immediately firefighting teams were rushed to the spot.
Port trust deputy chairperson Y. Wanaghe said the confusion arose because of the port trust's proximity to the Castrol Lubricant Technology Centre. "The incident happened as the leak in the pipeline was being fixed. Thankfully, no one was injured."
Along with the petroleum line, the area also had kerosene, diesel and black oil pipelines. According to officials, the leakage was detected on Saturday morning at a point in the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) pipeline that carries petroleum.
Parmar said the pipeline is owned by MbPT, which connects a refinery of state-run oil refiner HPCL with tank farms located nearby. Iamin reports suggested that the pipeline in question belonged to BPCL.
The blaze has been doused, but residues of the oil which is still in the pipeline may result in minor flashes of fire, Parmar said, adding that oil supply has been stopped.
According to reports, a large patch of mangroves was also destroyed due to the incident.