Mumbai: One person was killed and seven injured in three separate incidents of fire reported in the city and Palghar district on Wednesday.
In Kanjurmarg (East), a fire broke out in the electric meter room of a 15-storey residential building. At 8.05 a.m., security guards at Royal Park Building noticed smoke coming out of the meter room of the C Wing. The fire brigade received the call at 8.07 a.m. and reached the spot 16 minutes later. The blaze was extinguished at 9.37 a.m. with the help of four fire engines and four water tankers.
The building with 147 flats and 500 residents were evacuated. While there were no casualties, seven residents suffered minor injuries. Two residents were admitted to Hiranandani Hospital, while five were admitted to Ankur Hospital. According to Vijay Ganeshan, a resident, their condition are stable. Fire officials said prima facie, the blaze was caused due to a short circuit. “The fire spread through the duct and did not spread to the residential areas of the building. No flats were affected. We are investigating as to what caused the short circuit and whether it could have been avoided,” said a senior fire officer.
Mr. Ganeshan said after seeing the smoke, they immediately cut the power supply. “The smoke was thick. Most of us came down through other wings after walking up to the terrace,” he said.
Second incident
In the second incident, a fire broke out at a call centre in Dahisar. The fire on the fifth floor of Laxman Tower was caused by scrap material. The fire brigade got the call at 6.08 p.m. and arrived at the scene at 6.25 p.m. The building was evacuated. Three fire engines and three jumbo tankers were pressed into service. The blaze was extinguished by 6.40 p.m. There were no casualties.
Charred to death
In Palghar district, one person was killed when a fire broke out in a three-storey building in Kasa. The police received a call at 3.30 a.m. about the blaze in the residential-cum-commercial building, located near a temple. The building’s ground floor and the first floor, which housed a provisions store and its godown, were gutted. A 46-year-old man, identified as Aziz Virani, the co-owner of the provisions store, was charred to death, said Hemant Katkar, PRO of the district’s rural police. The body was sent for post-mortem.
( With PTI inputs )
