Though the exact cause of mishap was not immediately known, the local residents attributed the mishap to a series of domestic cylinder explosions at Damu Nagar slum, covering an area admeasuring 1,000 X 500 sq meters.
Advertisement
Deputy Chief Fire Official P S Rahangdale said that at least 16 fire engines, 12 water tankers, five fire brigade officials along with jawans have been rushed to the spot to douse the flames.
Witnesses on Twitter had reported multiple explosions in Kandivali, the northern suburb, posting photographs and film footage of a plume of thick black smoke rising above the area. About 175 fire fighters were involved in the major rescue operation. A fire department official described the incident as category 2 fire. In June, a fire in a high-rise apartment block killed seven people after they became trapped in a lift on the upper floors. Twenty emergency medical vehicles and two private ambulances were also pressed into service.
Additional Commissioner of Police (North) Fatehsingh Patil confirmed that a burnt body was recovered while several other unidentified victims were rushed to the BMC’s Ambedkar Hospital.
Electricity to all nearby buildings was cut off as a precautionary measure.
An official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s disaster control cell said the fire erupted around 12.30 p.m.in the sprawling and densely populated Damunagar slum.
Advertisement
Please Wait while comments are loading…
