CHENNAI: Major fire broke out at a scrap godown near Madipakkam on Tuesday morning. While no injuries were reported in the fire accident, thick smoke billowed out of the godown which engulfed the sky, making residents wary.

As many as six fire tenders from Velachery, Thoraipakkam, Guindy, Ashok Nagar, Medvakkam and Saidapet fire stations rushed to the scene and after an ordeal that lasted for over three hours, the fire was put out.

Police suspect the fire to have triggered due to an electrical short circuit in the godown located on Ram Nagar south extension. The godown belonged to Kannan of Madipakkam and housed plastic and iron scrap.

Workers first noticed thick smoke coming out of the godown around noon and immediately alerted the fire control and moved to safety. "There were also short bursts of explosion. So, we moved people away from the area and restricted traffic for a while too, " said a senior police officer.

Since the smoke rose to at least two hundred metres high, there was a curiosity among the public and police also had to restrict onlookers from approaching the area.

"The smoke was visible as far as three kilometers from where the incident happened. I was initially worried that some major accident had taken place, but was relieved after knowing that no person was hurt, " said P Supriya, a resident of Puzhuthivakkam.