Three fires rage in Georgia under extreme heat
2 dead, 6 injured in paint warehouse fire in Tbilisi

Tens of thousands worth of damage has been caused by three major fires that struck the country today.

Extremely hot temperatures and dry weather are believed to have contributed to two fires in Tbilisi – one deemed extremely serious where a paint warehouse went up in flames – and another fire in Borjomi.

More than a hundred firefighters and rescue workers spent hours tackling the three fires today, all of which were described as extremely intense. But by this evening all three fires had been extinguished however crews were still at the main fire in Tbilisi dampening down the remaining hot-spots, officials said.

The main and most destructive fire occurred in Eliava market in Didube, Tbilisi. It is understood two people perished in the fire and several emergency responders suffered smoke inhalation.

A large fire erupted at Eliava market this afternoon. Photo by Netgazeti

The blaze broke out about 5.30pm in a paint warehouse. The flammable materials inside the warehouse meant the fire burnt quickly and was very hot. Large orange flames were seen shooting out from the windows and walls while thick, putrid black smoke plumed into the air. 

Twenty-eight fire trucks and 125 firefighters and rescue workers were called to fight the blaze while a helicopter was used to drop water from above.

A helicopter was used to help extinguish the blaze. Photo by Imedi TV

Reports this evening noted two market vendors were missing however no bodies have yet been found. During the firefighting efforts one firefighter was injured and a rescuer suffered smoke inhalation. Both have been taken to hospital for further treatment. A third person was reportedly also taken to hospital.

Officials from the Tbilisi Mayor’s Office visited the scene shortly after the fire broke to assess the scale of the damage. 

Tbilisi Mayor Davit Narmania said the fire started in a paint warehouse that housed extremely flammable materials. 

"There was a threat that the fire could spread to other warehouses but fortunately our rescuers and firefighters managed to stop this,” Narmania said.

It was too early to talk about the loss incurred by the fire but further details, including the cause of the blaze, would be known once an investigation had taken place.

At the same time across town, firefighters were called to a scrub fire near the Tbilisi Sports Palace in Saburtalo.

Deputy Head of the Tbilisi Emergency Agency Davit Gelashvili said the fire burned one hectare of trees, bush and shrubbery before it was extinguished by firefighters. Gelashvili could not specify the cause of the fire and stressed no one was injured in the blaze.

Finally, another fire erupted in Borjomi today in eastern Georgia. For the second time in recent days the forest caught alight in the dry heat.

The fire emerged near a cableway and quickly spread over 100 sqm. Locals stressed the extremely high temperatures of late was most likely the cause of the fire.

Several days ago another fire broke out in a forest near Borjomi.

A firefighter works to extinguish the forest fire in Borjomi. Photo by Emergency Management Centre.