Welding work at a construction site in Agenskalns nearly led to a serious fire. The fire was quickly localized, no one was injured, but some of the completed work will have to be redone, and the construction timeline will be pushed back by at least a week.
The incident occurred shortly after 2:00 PM on Lapu Street in Riga. During welding work, a spark ignited the roof structure of the building under construction, causing wooden elements to catch fire.
The workers attempted to extinguish the fire themselves, but it soon became clear that they needed the help of firefighters.
"The welder was working, and the material caught fire. The wooden structure ignited, after which the fire spread inside. We tried to put it out ourselves, but we still called the firefighters," said one of the builders in the Degpunktā program (TV3).
Significant forces from the State Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) were dispatched to the scene: five fire trucks and a ladder truck.
According to the rescuers, the fire broke out in the four-story building under construction.
"After two o'clock in the afternoon, a call was received about a fire on Lapu Street, where the roof structure was burning over an area of ten square meters. Before the firefighters arrived, 15 people evacuated the building on their own," reported SFRS representative Anete Strazdina.
Thanks to the prompt actions, the fire was quickly localized and prevented from spreading to other parts of the building.
There were no injuries as a result of the incident. After the firefighters finished their work, the builders were able to return to the site about three hours later.
However, the consequences of the fire turned out to be more serious than it might seem at first glance. Some structures were damaged by the fire and now need to be replaced.
"We resumed work after three hours. But now everything will have to be done again. As a result, the work has been delayed by about a week," admitted one of the builders.
The incident in Agenskalns served as another reminder of the high risks associated with welding and other hot work at construction sites.
Even a single stray spark can lead to additional costs, construction delays, and a large mobilization of emergency services.
This time, there were no injuries or serious damage, but the construction will still have to make up for lost time.
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