Mumbai: A massive fire broke out in the Bank of India building in South Mumbai near the Bombay High Court around 4.30 p.m. on Friday. The 100-year-old building houses the Mumbai headquarters of the bank.
The fire brigade said there were 400 employees in the building at the time. Of these, 80 were on the fourth floor of the six-storey building, where the fire broke out.
“The fire alarms went off, which helped in quick evacuation. It appears that the fire was caused by a cylinder blast,” fire department officials said.
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“Four fire engines, five water tankers and two special ladders were pressed into service,” Chief Fire Officer P.S. Rahangdale said. Mr. Rahangdale said the fire affected documents and records, computers, air-conditioning units, electric wiring and installations and the server room on the fourth floor.
Bank of India Deputy General Manager P.K. Sinha said, “There were 30 customers inside the bank when we witnessed the smoke [emanating] from the fourth floor. All of us came down and informed the fire brigade. No one was inside the building.”
One bank official said, “We were winding up the daily work when we heard a blast-like sound. We ignored it as it seemed a trivial issue. The fire-fighting system kicked in and colleagues started shouting about the blaze, so we left the office immediately.”
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The fire was brought under control by Friday night and cooling operations were under way.
With inputs from PTI