A fire broke out on the 22nd floor of landmark Air India building at Nariman Point in downtown south Mumbai on Tuesday. There were no causalities or injuries in the mishap.
The fire was noticed on the 22nd floor of the basement-plus-ground-plus 23-storey building at around 6.35 am. Having received the call at 6.40 am, the Mumbai Fire brigade rushed 8 fire engines and 7 water tankers to the spot immediately.
The fire fighter brought the situation under control at around 9 am and extinguished fully twenty minutes later. “The fire was confined to the 22nd floor of the building. There was neither any causality nor were there injuries. We extinguished the fire at 0920 hrs,” a senior fire brigade officer said.
The Air India building used to be the headquarters of India’s flag carrier airline till 2013. The national airline had moved out of the building as part of an asset-monetisation exercise and its headquarters is now in New Delhi for practical purposes. However, Air India has retained the 21st, 22nd and 23rd floors of the building.
The airline officials said that they were assessing the damage caused by the fire.
Informed AI sources said that electrical fittings, furniture and some wooden doors were gutted in the fire. Though there were unconfirmed reports said that some documents kept by the airline on the 22nd floor had been destroyed in the fire, there was official confirmation to that effect from Air India.
There was also no official word on the cause and circumstances leading to the fire.