Page 16 - Fire Accident

Fire breaks out in Wadala building in Mumbai; no report of injuries

A fire broke out in a 38-storey building in Wadala in Mumbai at around 11pm on Friday, though there are no reports of anyone getting injured or being trapped, an official said. He said eight fire engines have sent to douse the blaze on the 26th and 27th floors of Dosti Ambrosia building near Wadala bus depot in Antop Hill. "As per preliminary information, no one has been hurt in the incident. Personnel from the Mumbai Fire Brigade, BEST, police, 108 ambulance service and civic staff are at the site for the dousing operation," the official informed.

350 evacuated as fire breaks out at building in Thane, none injured

A total of 350 residents were evacuated after a fire broke out in a five-storey building in Maharashtra's Thane district in the early hours of Friday, an official said. No one was injured in the fire that was confined to the electric meter room of Aman Heights located in the Shivaji Nagar area of Mumbra, he said. The fire started around 1.30 am and destroyed 109 electric meters, said Yasin Tadvi, chief of the Disaster Management Cell of the Thane Municipal Corporation. It was brought under control at 2.30 am. The fire in the electrical components resulted in thick black smoke enveloping the building, prompting the residents to rush out in panic. A total of 350 residents were evacuated from the building, said Tadvi. The residents returned to their flats after about two hours, he said. The power supply to the building has been snapped as a precautionary measure and is likely to be restored during the day, he said, adding that the exact cause of the fire is yet to be established.

Fire breaks out at commercial unit in Mumbai, no casualties reported

A fire broke out at a commercial unit in the western suburb of Sakinaka here on Saturday morning, and there was no casualty in the incident, a fire official said. The blaze occurred around 9.40 am in a single-storey structure near a bus stop on the Andheri-Kurla road, the official said. Three fire engines, jumbo tankers and an ambulance were dispatched to deal with the Level 1 category fire, he said. The fire-fighting operation is underway, the official said. Paper, cloth, electrical wiring and other materials were stored on the premises, he said. The cause for the fire is yet to be ascertained, it was stated.

Empty train coach catches fire at railway yard in Thane, no casualties

A coach of an empty train caught fire at a railway yard in Maharashtra's Thane district in the wee hours of Saturday, an official from the Central Railway (CR) said. The blaze occurred around 1.20 am in the train parked at the railway yard in Badlapur, around 70-80 km from here, the CR spokesperson said. The train was on the Karjat bound loop line, he said. "While the coach was destroyed in the fire, there was no other damage or injury to any person. The Central Railway has ordered a probe by the assistant officers committee," the spokesperson said. The blaze was brought under control in an hour, he said. Following the fire, the overheard wires were switched off between Badlapur and Vangani stations, officials said. Meanwhile, commuters claimed that a few late-night local trains were halted midway due to the fire.

Police arrest 3 in connection with deadly fire at Dhaka shopping mall

Bangladesh police have arrested three persons, including two owners of a restaurant, in connection with the massive fire that broke out at a shopping mall in the capital Dhaka that killed at least 46 people. The fire broke out around 9:50 pm on Thursday at the restaurant named Kacchi Bhai on the first floor of the building, Green Cozy Cottage, and quickly spread to the upper floors that had more restaurants and a garment shop, according to fire service officials. Two owners of an eatery called Chumuk and the manager of Kacchi Bhai restaurant were arrested on Friday, Dhaka Metropolitan Police Additional Commissioner Kh Mahid Uddin said. He said, The fire started from the food shop on the ground floor of the building. The police will file a case over negligence in connection with the deaths in the fire incident. Besides, anyone from the victim's family can file a case if they want, said the police official. At least 46 people were killed, and over 20 others sustained severe injuries

Fire at seven-storey building in Bangladesh's capital kills at least 44

A fire at a seven-storey building in the central part of the Bangladesh capital overnight has killed at least 43 people and left 22 others injured, Health Minister Dr Samanta Lal Sen said on Friday. The condition of those injured is "critical", he told reporters at a briefing here at 2 am. The fire broke out around 9:50 pm on Thursday at a restaurant on the building's first floor and quickly spread to the upper floors that had more restaurants and a garment shop, according to fire service officials. They said 75 people, including 42 in unconscious state, were taken out of the seven-storey building. Thirteen fire service units were mobilised, the officials said. "Thirty-three people died at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) and 10 at (the nearby) Sheikh Hasina National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery," Sen said. The minister, a burn wound specialist, said 22 people are being treated at both the health facilities and their condition is "critical". "The respiratory sys

Indian journalist dies in fire incident in Manhattan residential building

A 27-year-old Indian national, who worked as a journalist here, tragically lost his life in a fire incident in an apartment building in Manhattan. Fazil Khan was killed in the fire that broke out in a six-story residential building at 2 St. Nicholas Place in Harlem, Manhattan that left about 17 other people injured. The New York City Fire Department said that its marshals have determined that the devastating fire was caused by a lithium-ion battery. Khan is a journalist with New York-based media company The Hechinger Report, which is focused on innovation and inequality in education. The Consulate General of India in New York expressed condolences on Khan's death and said it is extending all possible assistance to repatriate his mortal remains to his family in India. Saddened to learn about the death of 27-year old Indian national Fazil Khan in an unfortunate fire incident in Harlem, NY, the Consulate said in a post on X Saturday. The Consulate said it is in touch with Khan's fam

In case of fire, break glass ceiling: Pune to get first lady firefighter

Breaking the gender barrier, 26-year-old Meghana Sakpal is set to become the first woman to join Pune Municipal Corporation's (PMC) fire brigade department. Firefighting seems to run in her family as her grandfather was a fireman and her father, Mahendra Sakpal, currently serves as a fire personnel. "I grew up listening to the tales of my grandfather's and father's heroic feats during firefighting in the city. They inspired me. I am very proud that I am the first woman to join the fire department of the Pune corporation," Meghana told PTI on Thursday. Until now, only Mumbai had women firefighters in Maharashtra. A commerce graduate, Meghana began to prepare for her dream job in 2019. After clearing online examinations and physical tests, she went to Mumbai for training, which was briefly interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. But she completed the training in November 2022. She had initially applied for a job with the Mumbai fire department, but could not clear the physical test. .

Delhi's Alipur fire probe: Two, including factory owner's son, arrested

Days after 11 people died in a fire at a paint factory here, two persons, including the factory owner's son, were arrested in connection with the incident on Saturday, police said. The accused have been identified as Akhil Jain (37), the son of factory owner Ashok Jain, who died in the fire, and Rajrani, who owns the land on which the factory was situated, they said. Besides Ashok Jain, 10 workers died in the fire that broke out in the factory in outer Delhi's Alipur area on the evening of February 15. The fire was preceded by a blast and soon it spread to nearby buildings, including a drug rehabilitation centre and eight shops. According to the FIR registered in the matter, a huge quantity of inflammable material was found inside the factory. Earlier, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) had said that the building where the fire broke out was being used illegally for the purpose of mixing chemical paint. The FIR was registered on a complaint by Sub-Inspector Anil Kumar of Al

15 commercial units, houses damaged due to fire in Mumbai's Govandi

Around 15 commercial units and some houses were damaged in a fire that broke out in a chawl in Mumbai's Govandi area early on Saturday, in which nobody was reported injured, an official said. The fire brigade received a call at 3.55 am, which alerted it about the blaze, he said. "Around 15 galas (commercial units) on the ground floor and some houses on the first floor were damaged in the fire that broke out in a chawl at Bainganwadi in Adarsh Nagar area of Govandi," the fire brigade official said. The fire engulfed some electrical wiring and installations, plastic sheets, household items, wooden planks and furniture, among other things, he said, adding that attempts to douse the flames were underway. Some water tankers along with an ambulance were rushed to the spot. Nobody was found injured and the exact cause of the fire is yet to be known, the official added.

Alipur fire: Delhi CM announces ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh for kin of deceased

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday announced an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh each for the kin of those killed in the fire in a paints factory in Alipur here that left 11 people dead. The chief minister also visited the site to take stock of the situation in the aftermath of the blaze that broke out on Thursday evening. "We have full sympathy for the families of the deceased. We will provide a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each for the kin of the deceased. Two people have sustained minor injuries and they will be awarded a compensation of Rs 20,000 each and those with major injuries will be awarded a compensation of Rs two lakh each," he told reporters. He said those whose nearby shops and houses were affected due to the fire will be awarded compensation in line with the government's policy. The chief minister said there are allegations that there was delay in the arrival of fire tenders to the spot. "I will issue instructions for inquiry into the alleged delay in the arrival o

Death toll in Delhi's Alipur market fire rises to 11, four injured

The death toll in an explosion and subsequent fire in a paint factory in outer Delhi's Alipur area has climbed to 11 with four more bodies recovered from the premises, police said on Friday. Four people were injured in the fire that broke out on Thursday evening and are undergoing treatment at a hospital, they said. The charred bodies of the 11 victims were recovered from the factory, which also houses chemical godowns, located in Alipur's Dayalpur market, a Delhi Fire Services (DFS) official said. The fire was preceded by a blast and soon it spread to nearby buildings, including a drug rehabilitation centre and eight shops. The DFS official said a call about the fire was received around 5:30 pm on Thursday and 22 fire tenders were pressed into service. The blaze was brought under control by 9 pm, he said, adding that 11 charred bodies were recovered from the factory premises. In a post on X, DFS chief Atul Garg said, "Despite best efforts by DFS, 11 labours died in paint factory

NDRF, SDRF continue to remove debris in MP's Harda after massive fire

Visuals showed that teams of NDRF, SDRF, and police continuing the cooling operation and clearing the debris from the incident site

2 owners of firecrackers unit in MP's Harda arrested; another man detained

Two owners of the firecrackers factory in Madhya Pradesh's Harda town, where an explosion and subsequent blaze killed 11 people and injured 174 others, have been arrested by the police, officials said. They were booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, among other charges, after an FIR was filed against them on Tuesday evening, they said. Another person was detained in connection with the incident that took place on Tuesday in the Bairagarh locality on Magardha Road on the outskirts of Harda town, approximately 150km from the state capital Bhopal. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav will meet the injured persons and families of the deceased in Harda on Wednesday, an official said. The two factory owners -- identified as Rajesh Agrawal and Somesh Agrawal -- were arrested on Tuesday evening from Sarangpur in Rajgarh district, while one more person named Rafiq Khan was detained, Harda Superintendent of Police Sanjeev Kanchan told reporters. These accused were booked under Indian

Harda fire: 11 killed, 60 injured; MP city engulfed in smoke. Top updates

Harda factory blast updates: According to officials, many people are feared trapped in and around the unit and casualties are likely to go up. Several fire tenders have been rushed to the spot

Hundreds of people missing as death toll from Chile's wildfires reaches 123

Volunteers in central Chile tried to remove charred metal, broken glass and other debris Monday from neighbourhoods devastated by wildfires over the past several days, as officials raised the death toll to 122. Hundreds of people remain missing. The fires appeared to have diminished by Monday morning after burning intensely since Friday on the eastern edge of the city of Vina del Mar. Two other towns in the Valparaso region, Quilpe and Villa Alemana, also have been hit hard, and President Gabriel Boric said on Sunday that at least 3,000 homes had been burnt down in the area. An additional 10 victims were added to the death toll on Monday afternoon, bringing it to 122, said Marisol Prado, the director of Chile's Forensic Medical Service. Prado said that many bodies were in bad condition and difficult to identify, but added that forensic workers would be taking samples of genetic material from people who have reported missing relatives. Via del Mar's Mayor Macarena Ripamonti said tha

Fire set off by a gas explosion in Kenya kills 3 people, injures 280 others

A truck loaded with liquid petroleum gas cylinders exploded in a depot in the Kenyan capital and set off a late-night inferno that rapidly spread and burned homes and warehouses, killing at least three people and injuring 280, officials said Friday. The death toll was expected to rise. At least 24 people were critically injured, the Kenya Red Cross said, after a huge fireball erupted from the gas depot. Some gas cylinders were thrown hundreds of metres (feet), sparking separate fires in the neighbourhood. The truck was parked inside a gas cylinder storage and filling site that had multiple applications to operate there rejected last year because it was too close to residential areas, Kenya's Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority said, raising questions over whether it was operating illegally. The government knew this liquid petroleum gas plant was existing in a residential area but they did nothing, local resident Charles Mainge said. They should make sure this doesn't happen .

Four killed as fire breaks out in ground floor of house in Delhi's Shahdara

Four people, including an infant, died of suffocation and two were injured when a major fire broke out in a house on the ground floor of a multi-storey building in Delhi's Shahdara area on Friday, police said. A call was received at 5:22 pm about a blaze in a house in the Shahdara area, fire officials said. "Five fire tenders were pressed into service and the blaze was doused by 6:55 pm. Rubber material like wipers and a rubber-cutting machine kept in a house on the ground floor of the building had caught fire," said Delhi Fire Services (DFS) chief Atul Garg. Police and fire officials rescued six people from the building and rushed them to GTB Hospital, he said. A senior police officer said after receiving information about the fire in the building, police personnel rushed to the spot and managed to rescue three people with the help of locals. They were taken to the hospital in a PCR van, he said. After fire officials reached the spot, they rescued three more people, including a

At least six die, four critically injured in coal mine accident in Nagaland

At least six workers were charred to death and four critically injured in a fire accident inside an illegal coal mine in Nagaland's Wokha district, an official said. The incident took place at Richanyan village under Bhandari sub-division of Wokha district around 1pm on January 25, Bhandari MLA Achumbemo Kikon told PTI here on Friday. Kikon, who is in Bhandari to take stock of the situation, said the workers, all from Assam, were engaged in digging inside the illegal rat-hole mine when there was a fire killing six of them and critically injuring four others. The injured were rushed to a hospital in Dimapur, an official said. Expressing concern on such illegal coal mines in Bhandari, the MLA urged the state department to take stringent steps to stop such mines.

Fire breaks out at Dr Ambedkar Hospital in Mumbai, patients evacuated

According to the official, a fire call was received at 1.47 am on Sunday. Fire tenders were rushed to the spot and the flames was doused around 2.25 am