Thirteen ambulances were gutted in a fire that broke out on the premises of a community health centre (CHC) in Barabanki’s district’s Zaidpur on Sunday afternoon.

No casualties were reported in the incident, officials said.

Nearly 40 ambulances from across the district had been parked at the CHC premises for the last few years since they were out of use, they added.

“These were defunct ambulances meant for scrap auction. Attempts were made twice to auction them but no bidder showed interest. We are trying to re-estimate their value to sell them off,” a Health Department official said.

Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Awadhesh Yadav said the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. “Out of the 40 ambulances, 13 were completely gutted. The remaining are intact,” he said.

“With the help of cranes and other equipment, the remaining ambulances were quickly pulled away from the site, stopping the fire from spreading further,” Yadav said.

Police and fire brigade teams rushed to the spot and brought the blaze under control.

An investigation has been initiated to determine the cause of the fire, it is learnt.