At least four persons, including a 62-year-old woman, were killed and 22 others injured when a massive fire swept through the 12th floor and spread to a few other floors of the 17-storey building, ’Crystal Towers’ at Parel in south-central Mumbai on Wednesday morning.
As many as 35 trapped residents were rescued from the fire-hit building, even as the fire brigade personnel fought with the blaze before they brought it under control.
Of the four persons killed, two residents Shubhada Shelke (62) and Bablu Shaikh (36) succumbed to burn injuries. Two others – whose identities are being ascertained – died due to suffocation.
The injured included four brigade personnel. Of the injured, eighteen are undergoing treatment at the BMC-run KEM Hospital.
At around 8,30 am, the fire and smoke began to emanate from the 12th floor of the building which is located in the vicinity of the old Hindmata Cinema and has 58 flats. There are over 100 residents in the building
“The fire broke out on the 12th floor spread quickly to the upper floors. Before long, smoke enveloped 12th and other upper floors trapping the residents on the staircases,” Chief Fire Officer of the Mumbai Fire Brigade PS Rahangdale said.
The fire brigade personnel, who rushed to the mishap site with eight fire engines, four water tankers and snorkels, began rescuing the trapped residents. Simultaneously, the firemen with gas masks, confined the fire to the 12th floor, wiring in electric ducts from 12 floor to 16 floor in lift lobby, common corridors, lift shafts and also to electric wiring installation.
Significantly enough, a 10-year old girl Zen Sadavarte displayed calmness and circumspection, as saved the lives of members of three families in the smoke-enveloped floors. What she was that she piled up all the clothes in her flat and doused them in water, handed them to the trapped persons who were running helter skelter and asked them cover their faces with the wet clothes so that they do not inhale dangerous smoke and fumes emanating from the blaze.
“I have learnt in school how to remain cool and composed during emergencies like fire. I advised the trapped people to use wet towels, avoid inhaling the dangerous smoke and fumes, move in orderly fashion to the stairs and avoid touching electrical gadgets,” Zen told media persons outside the building.
Similarly, a fire woman Sunita B. Patil played a big part bye rescuing as many as 17 trapped residents using a snorkel.
Meanwhile, informed BMC sources said that the residents had occupied the building without Occupation Certificates (OCs). “The BMC had approved re-development plans and also granted Completion Certificates (CCs) for the Ground plus 16 storey building. Since the residents did not have OCs, the BMC had issued notices to 58 flat owners and owner/developer under section 353 a of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in 2016. The matter is now before a city,” a senior civic official said.
The fire brigade officers prima facie said the fire might have broken because of faulty wiring. “The electric ducts were not sealed at each floor level Because of this, fire and dense smoke spread to upper floors,” a senior fire officer said.
“Similarly, the fire fighting system was not in working condition. We had a challenge to reach our fire fighting Resources to upper floors,” the officer said.
“We will register a complaint against the society’s office bearers for criminal negligence. We have declared the building unsafe for occupation and we have discontinued power and water supplies to the building temporarily," Rahangdale said.
Wednesday’s was the sixth fire mishap witnessed in the metropolis since early June.
In the first such mishap that took place on June 1, the fire br9oke out in the third and fourth floor of the six-storey Scindia House at Ballard Estate in downtown south Mumbai.
The affected building housed income tax department’s investigation wing and debt recovery tribunal (DRT) offices. No one was injured in the mishap, while six persons were rescued from the building. A fire fighter identified as one Yashwant Dagdu Balsa, fell unconscious due to the lack of oxygen.
Twenty four hours later, another fire broke out at a leather company in Reay Road in south-central Mumbai. No injuries were reported in the mishap. On June 9, a massive fire broke out at Patel Chambers at Fort in south Mumbai. Two firemen were injured after a part of the building collapsed due to fire.
On June 13, a major fire that broke out in the top floors of a 34-storey building “Beaumonde Towers” where B-town’s reigning actress Deepika Padukone lives, spread. However, two hours later, the fire fighters controlled the blaze and rescued 90-odd residents safely.
On August 5, a major fire swept through the Regional Transport Office (RTO) at Tardeo in south Mumbai here in the early hours of Sunday, gutting hundreds of documents, licences, furniture, computers, printers and other items. There were no causalities or injuries in the mishap. Fortunately enough, the fire did
Earlier on December 29 last year, 14 persons were killed and 55 others were injured in the massive fire that ripped Mojo's Bistro lounge, neighbouring 1Above casual dining restaurant and london Taxi Gastro pub at Trade House.
The Maharashtra government has ordered an inquiry, headed by a retired judge of the Bombay High Court into the Kamala mills compound fire and the alleged misuse of 95,000 sq meters of FSI given for IT projects at the blaze-hit compound at lower Parel in south-central Mumbai.