India, March 10 -- A major fire broke out at a chemical factory in the Anand Nagar Industrial Area of Ambernath, near Thane, on Monday evening at around 5:30 pm. While no casualties were reported, fire fighters took three hours to douse the flames.

According to fire officials, the fire erupted at Shri Ganesh Chemicals and soon grew so intense that the massive flames were visible from nearly 5km away. During the blaze, chemical drums and other materials were scattered onto nearby roads. Local residents said the blaze, which was followed by eight to ten explosion-like sounds, led to panic in the nearby areas.

Due to the intensity of the fire, the flames spread to nearly 10 neighbouring industrial units, forcing them to shut down operation...