4 persons killed as massive blaze rips through building in Rohini, Delhi

Four persons were killed and three others sustained injuries in a fire that broke out in a five-storey building housing several manufacturing units in Rohini Sector 5, the police said on Wednesday.

Sixteen fire tenders were rushed to the spot after the Delhi Fire Services (DFS) received a call about the blaze at 7.30 p.m. on Tuesday. However, due to the combustible material stored in the building, including plastic and clothes, and the narrow lanes leading up to it, which prevented fire engines that ran out of water from giving way to other rescue vehicles, it took the DFS over 12 hours to douse the flames.

So severe was the fire that the four bodies pulled out of the building were charred beyond recognition, said a senior police officer, adding that efforts are being made to ascertain their identities. Two of the injured — Nitin Bansal, 31, and Rakesh, 30 — have sustained 80% burn injuries and are being treated at RML Hospital. Virender, 25, who survived with minor burns, is undergoing treatment at Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital.

DCP (Rohini) Rajeev Ranjan said an investigation is under way to find what caused the fire.

A case of negligence has been registered at the Budh Vihar police station.

Trapped inside

According to a DFS officer present at the spot, the building did not have a fire safety clearance or even a clear emergency escape route. Each floor housed a separate commercial unit and had its own locks installed. “Two bodies were found next to the stairs on the second floor. They probably couldn’t escape due to the locked doors. Another body was recovered near the stairs on the third floor,” said the officer.

“The stretch leading up to the building is congested. We reached the site with our biggest 12,000-litre fire engines. However, the fire tenders ran out of water and could not move out of the area easily and allow other vehicles to come in as there was little space to manoeuvre the vehicles,” he said, adding that the firefighting operation could have been conducted more efficiently had the department been given the larger, 20,000-litre fire engines.

“We had to deploy an earthmover to drill a hole in the wall, only after which we gained access to the building and started firefighting operations,” said the officer.

Eyewitness account

Vinod Kumar, a factory worker who was on the ground floor of the building, said he saw flames erupt out of nowhere and quickly engulf the entire floor.

“I managed to escape somehow. It was very scary. I couldn’t have returned inside to save the others. Several other workers also escaped with me. We called for help in the neighbourhood and took some of the injured to a nearby hospital in an autorickshaw,” he said.

He added that at least seven persons were inside the building at the time of the incident. “Around 30-35 people work on different floors of the building at a time. Some stay back and rest here after the shift gets over around 5.30 p.m.,” said the survivor.