20230126 Fire in Andheri highrise at night, 10 taken to hospital
India Jan 26 2023 “Building” “Complex bldg.”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : 1 to 29 Injured : injured more than 10
Fire in Andheri highrise at night, 10 taken to hospital
Updated: 2023-01-26
MUMBAI: A fire broke out in a ground-plus-28 storey building at Lokhandwala Complex, Andheri (west), early on Wednesday. Ten people, two of them septuagenarians, were admitted to two hospitals due to suffocation.
According to the fire brigade, the fire was confined to electrical ducts and did not spread to the lobby or passage of Shivsakthi building. The blaze fully put out by 5.10 am.
While fire brigade officials said the fire may have erupted in electrical cables due to a short circuit in the electrical duct on the 24th floor, residents claimed it erupted even on the 14th floor of the building which has 107 flats. Residents of higher floors were told to remain confined to their houses as smoke spread through the electrical duct and staircase.
“People were saved because somebody shut electricity supply and the fire brigade came on time. The watchman called me up and told me there was a fire and asked me to come down. My wife and I tried to get down the staircase. But I realised that I couldn’t come down due to the smoke that I was inhaling and went back to my flat. Access to the terrace was closed and keys were with some committee members. Therefore, we confined ourselves to our flat. All other flats on the floor I live were vacant. Around 4.30 am, fire brigade officials knocked on our door and asked me to stay inside. Though the fire was extinguished, the staircase and other areas still had smoke,” said Naresh Raval, 63. a resident of the 28th floor.
Vishva Shah, a resident of a nearby building, said a fire brigade vehicle with hydraulic lift could not be used due to the space and access around the building.
Naresh Kishnani, a resident of the fifth floor, woke up to hear people shouting. “I opened the main door and could smell smoke. My family and I came down using flashlights of phones. …,” said Kishnani.
“The fire started in electrical ducts and spread. We are not sure on which floor, the fire first erupted,” said a fire official.
Six of the injured were rushed to Nanavati Hospital, Vile Parle, while four were taken to Kokilaben Hospital, Andheri . Doctors at Nanavati said all six were brought with complaints of breathlessness, chest congestion and persistent cough.
Two of the four patients admitted to Kokilaben Hospital were discharged. “We had four patients with injuries. Two are currently undergoing treatment,” said Dr Santosh Shetty, CEO and executive Director, Kokilaben Hospital. (Inputs by Sumitra Deb Roy)
Web Source: The Times of India