Mumbai building collapses after massive fire; two firefighters injured

A major fire broke out in an old building in South Mumbai early on Saturday and a part of it collapsed, injuring two fire brigade personnel, an official said. 

The fire brigade personnel were injured when a portion of the building, called Kothari building (also known as the Light Of Asia), collapsed during the fire-fighting operation, he said. The firemen were caught unawares when the south portion of the structure suddenly collapsed around 6.45 a.m. A fire brigade tanker and a specialised equipment unit were also damaged in the crash.

The inferno destroyed the dilapidated and vacant Kothari Building in Fort area of Central Business District around 4.00 a.m.

The fire in the ground-plus-five-storey building, which is unoccupied for the past nearly five years, started at around 4 am, the official from the fire department said.

The structure in the Fort area, a major business district, is old and its southern part collapsed when fire brigade personnel were putting out the blaze, he said.

Fire department officials confirmed no one was trapped inside the building. 

Sixteen fire engines were deployed to douse the flames, he said, adding the cause of the blaze was not immediately known.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Disaster Cell said the building was abandoned more than five years ago after its main staircase crashed, rendering it unfit for habitation.

The fire-fighters took precaution to control the blaze from outside with the water curtain and not allow it to spread to adjoining buildings in the congested area.