India
oi-Madhuri Adnal
Thirty
five
people,
one
of
them
a
four-year-old
girl,
were
rescued
by
firemen
from
a
blaze
that
engulfed
a
women’s
paying
guest
facility
in
an
apartment
in
Northwest
Delhi’s
Mukherjee
Nagar
area
on
Wednesday
evening.
According
to
officials
from
the
fire
department,
five
persons,
including
the
girl,
were
taken
to
hospital
since
they
had
inhaled
fumes.
While
the
fire
department
sent
20
firetenders
to
the
site,
only
eight
could
reach
the
spot
because
of
traffic
congestion
and
narrow
lanes.
Delhi
Chief
Minister
Arvind
Kejriwal
said
he
is
monitoring
the
situation.
According
to
the
fire
department,
they
received
information
about
the
blaze
in
the
Signature
Apartments
at
7.47
pm,
and
rushed
20
fire
tenders
to
the
spot.
Comedian
Trevor
Noah
Cancels
Bengaluru
Shows,
Promises
Refund
”Things
are
under
control…there
is
no
casualty
and
everyone
has
been
evacuated,” Delhi
Chief
Fire
Service
Officer
Atul
Garg
told
PTI
around
9.30
pm.
”Fire
is
completely
extinguished.
There
were
around
35
girls
and
all
are
safe.”
It
seems
the
fire
started
from
a
metre
board
installed
near
the
staircase
and
spread
to
the
upper
floors,
he
said.
The
building
has
ground
floor
and
three
more
storeys
and
has
only
one
staircase
and
a
kitchen
on
terrace,
he
said.
Panic
gripped
the
area
as
flames
leapt
out
of
the
building.
Videos
from
the
spot
showed
firemen
climbing
ladders
to
rescue
those
trapped
inside
with
ambulance
and
firetenders’
sirens
blaring
in
the
backdrop.
A
fire
official
said
since
the
lanes
of
the
area
are
congested,
it
was
a
challenge
for
the
firetenders
to
reach
the
site.
”Eight
firetenders
could
reach
the
site
despite
us
deploying
20
units.
The
units
were
stuck
in
traffic
near
Hanuman
Mandir
at
Kashmere
Gate
and
then
at
Vishwavidyalaya.
We
sought
the
help
of
traffic
control
room
and
they
assisted
our
vehicles,” he
said.
Story first published: Wednesday, September 27, 2023, 23:17 [IST]
