Itahari, April 14:

Ten houses were gutted and property worth Rs 50 lakhs was destroyed in a fire that broke out at Paschim Kusaha VDC of Sunsari district today.

The Laukahi area police office said the fire broke out in a cowshed belonging to Atabul Ansari of Paschim Kusaha-9 and spread to nine other houses. Atabul’s house and those of Farid Malan,Yusuf Ansari, Bechan, Akeed, Hafeez, Bashir, Safid, Sajjad and Alauddin Ansari were gutted in the blaze.

Three-year-old cured jute fibres stored in the barns of Atabul, Farid and Yusuf also went up in smoke.

Clothes, household goods, food grains, cash and ornaments in all the 10 houses were gutted.

Three buffaloes and eight goats also perished, said eyewitnesses adding that the fire began at 8 am and they had to demolish 15 other houses close to spot in order to prevent the fire from spreading further.

Police said Atabul’s 17-year-old daughter Jallam Khatun sustained serious head injuries while trying to douse the fire. She has been taken to the Dharan-based BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences.

The fire was controlled at around 1 pm with the help of fire-fighters from Dharan, Itahari and Inaruwa, police and locals.

The victims have appealed to the administration to provide them relief.