News
Kachcheri fire report out soon
An investigation into the fire that broke out last week at the 160-year-old Colombo District Secretariat, or Colombo Kachcheri, is under way and a report should be ready by next week. The investigation is being conducted by the Government Analyst’s Department and the Colombo Crime Division (CCD). Meanwhile, business is as usual at the kachcheri, where temporary arrangements are in place to maintain an uninterrupted service to the public
The fire brigade did a good job,” he said. “It took about 20 minutes to get a proper water flow going. They worked for about four hours to bring the fire under control.” | Kamal Padmasiri
The fire, which started at 8.15 pm on Monday the 26th, raged for nearly four hours before it was brought under control. The second floor of the building, which is built largely of teak, collapsed during the fire.
Additional Government Analyst S. Gunatilleke and Colombo Crimes Division Director SSP D. R. L. Ranaweera told the Sunday Times that they were in the final stages of their investigation. The Crimes Division will be soon recording statements from Colombo District Secretariat officials. A special committee set up by the Ministry of Public Administration will assess the damage caused.
The fire spread to the administrative, accounts, planning divisions, record room, store and armoury, as well as rooms assigned to the Government Agent and the Additional Government Agent.
Kamal Padmasiri of the Colombo District Secretariat told the newspaper that the building was not equipped to tackle big fires, and had only fire extinguishers on the premises at the time. “The fire brigade did a good job,” he said. “It took about 20 minutes to get a proper water flow going. They worked for about four hours to bring the fire under control.”
The building has been declared a no-go zone, but Secretariat officials were allowed to enter the building on Wednesday to recover documents.
“We were surprised to find all the accounts division documents in the iron cupboards intact. We also recovered documents belonging to engineering and field officers,” Mr. Padmasiri said.
Although the Colombo District Secretariat Internet server was destroyed, data for birth, marriage and death certificates can be collected at all 13 Divisional Secretariats. The record room holds copies of old documents, the administration division contains staff files and case files, and the accounts division holds payment files, salaries and wages files.
Burnt out interior of the building. Pix by Mangala Weerasekera and Hasitha Kulasekera
The armoury contained old and discarded firearms, of which 89 items had been previously declared unusable by the Sri Lanka Army. Six shotguns were declared usable after repairs. Another 53 firearms were kept in the accounts division. “These items are antiques and unusable,” Mr. Padmasiri said.
Offices functioning in separate buildings on the kachcheri premises include the Samurdhi office, the Divisional Secretary’s office, and the sports, youth, land use planning, agriculture, and disaster management units.
Those sections of the kachcheri that were damaged in the fire, including the District Secretary’s office, will be shifted to the Thimbirigasyaya Divisional Secretariat, Mr. Padmasiri said.
The British-era kachcheri was built in 1854.
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