KOCHI/TRIPUNITHURA: More than 48 hours after the fire broke out at Brahmapuram waste treatment plant, the district administration on Sunday evening said they could douse the fire and bring down the percentage of smoke emanating from the plastic waste mound.“We could douse the fire and bring down 50% of the thick blanket of smoke billowing out from the mound. We will submit a report on the fire to the state government in three days. An inquiry will also be initiated to probe the cause of the fire,” said district collector K Mohammed Y Safirulla.Firefighters on Sunday created more fire lines using earth movers and pumped water beneath the heap of waste to prevent further burning of waste. They dumped earth on heaps of waste to prevent emission of thick smoke.Kerala state pollution control board (KSPCB) officials visited Brahmapuram plant again on Sunday along with Justice A V Ramakrishna Pillai, who heads the newly-formed state-level monitoring committee for the implementation of solid waste management rules 2016.KSPCB recorded high levels of respirable suspended particulate matter (RSPM) in the air at their monitoring stations at Brahmapuram, Vyttila hub and Ambalamugal. Values of methane ammonia, carbon monoxide and sulphur dioxide were on the border limit.Meanwhile, residents of Irumpanam Junction, North Irumpanam, Eroor, Bhaskaran Colony, Manakkapady and nearby areas had a sleepless night on Saturday and woke up to smog on Sunday morning as smoke remained in the sky. Protesting the frequent fire outbreaks, residents and Tripunithura councillors blocked vehicles at Puthiya Road Junction on Saturday night. “We stopped the protest at 3.30am on Sunday when two revenue officials held meeting with us and conveyed us about the measures being taken to douse the fire at the plant. But the problem is that smoke remain suspended in the air and spread to the ground along with fog in the morning and evening hours,” said Tripunithura municipality chairperson Chandrika Devi.“Many complained of breathing difficulties and sought medication. Unable to put up with the discomfort, residents, including elderly, children and pregnant women, temporarily shifted to other locations and houses of relatives,” Devi said.However, district medical officials said only three residents sought medication at Tripunithura primary health centre on Saturday night.

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