Fire breaks out in Air India building

A fire broke out in the iconic Air India building at Nariman Point in south Mumbai this morning, but there were no casualties or major damage as the floor was empty at that time.
The fire broke out in the 22nd floor of the high-rise, fire brigade officials said.
"Our control room got a call at 6.40 am about the fire and eight fire engines and seven water tankers along with several jawans were pressed immediately into service and they reached the spot within nine minutes. Our jawans had controlled the fire by 9.20 am," said P S Rahangdale, Chief Fire Officer.

"Fire was confined to electrical wiring, installations, furniture, windows, doors, etc., in the Chairman and Managing Director's (CMD's) office and other offices. It also spread in lobby in an area of about 4000 sq feet on 22nd floor and to furniture, documents in the waiting room on 23rd floor," he said.
An Air India statement termed the fire as minor.
"There was a minor fire that broke out on the 22nd floor of Air India Building....Within minutes the fire was brought under control by AI security and fire marshals. There were no casualties or injuries....Air India's top management and experts are assessing the damage," it said.

Cause of the fire was being investigated, said a fire brigade official, adding that had the fire broken out on the lower floors, the situation would have been different.
The iconic building was AI's corporate headquarters till 2013, before the airliner launched its asset-monetisation drive and leased out a part of the building. However it retained the 21st, 22nd and 23rd floors.