Thrissur (Kerala), Mar 3 (PTI) A massive fire gutted an oil godown at the Velakkode Industrial Area near here during the early hours of Monday after a former employee set it ablaze in anger over his dismissal.

The accused, Tito Thomas, later surrendered to the Medical College police, confessing that he deliberately set the fire, police said.

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According to Fire and Rescue Service officials, the blaze erupted at the Gulf Petrochemicals Oil Company, a furnace oil manufacturing unit in Mundoor, owned by a Thrissur native.

The godown stored over 1 lakh litres of oil, and firefighters managed to prevent a major explosion of the oil tanks.

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"Around Rs 3 lakh in cash was recovered from the fire," a fire official said.

Initially, the cause of the fire was unclear, but Thomas later admitted to the crime.

Several fire units from Kunnamkulam, Thrissur, Wadakkanchery, Chalakudy, and Guruvayur were deployed, and it took eight hours to bring the flames under control.

However, the fire was completely extinguished by 3 PM, officials said.

The initial assessment suggests that the financial loss runs into several lakhs.

The Medical College police said a case was registered against Thomas and his arrest was recorded.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)