A massive fire broke out at a girls’ PG in Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar area on Wednesday. The information about the blaze was received by the fire department at around 7:40 pm. The fire was completely extinguished and all 35 girls, which also included a four-year-old girl was rescued safely from the building.
#WATCH | A fire broke out in a girls' PG hostel in the Mukherjee Nagar area. 20 fire tenders have been rushed to the site: Delhi Fire Service pic.twitter.com/WewovMNcJN— ANI (@ANI) September 27, 2023
Only eight fire engines reached the spot even though 20 were sent to the spot, because of traffic congestion and narrow lanes. According to officials from the fire department, five persons, including the four-year old girl, were taken to hospital since they had inhaled fumes.
A team from the Delhi Police, employees and officers of the fire department were also present at the spot.
“Things are under control, there is no casualty and all have been evacuated,” Delhi Chief Fire Service Officer Atul Garg told PTI.
As flames came out of the building, a situation of panic gripped the area. Videos from the fire spot showed firemen climbing ladders to rescue those trapped inside with the help of ambulances and firetenders.
Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal expressed his concern regarding the incident on his official ‘X’, formerly known as Twitter account. He also said he is keeping eye on the developments in the incident which he termed “extremely saddening.” “This incident of fire in a PG in Mukherjee Nagar area is extremely saddening. The district administration and fire department have been instructed to safely evacuate the children present in the PG as soon as possible. I am constantly keeping an eye on it,” he added.
मुखर्जी नगर इलाक़े के पीजी में आग लगने की ये घटना बेहद दुखद है। ज़िला प्रशासन और दमकल विभाग को निर्देश दिए हैं कि पीजी में मौजूद बच्चों को जल्द से जल्द सुरक्षित बाहर निकालें। मैं लगातार इस पर नज़र बनाए हूँ। https://t.co/mxn6a407UW— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) September 27, 2023
A girl from the PG who was outside when the incident took place said, “We saw thick smoke coming from higher floors. Girls who were trapped inside were coming down using stairs of the adjacent building. There were wooden items on the ground floor. The PG has two fire exits and there was fire on both sides”.
Since the lanes of the area are congested, it was a challenge for the firetenders to reach the site, a fire official said.
The fire official also said that there are no rules for paying guest accommodations that make it compulsory for them to take a fire No Objection Certificate.
“Many guest houses that are unable to get a fire NOC are operating in the guise of PGs,” the official added.
The caretaker of the PG house, said, “There are 45 beds in the paying guest accommodation. There were 33-34 people inside when the fire started in the metre board.”
The fire department said that the fire started from meter board installed near the staircase and then spread to upper floors, The building has ground floor and three more storeys and has only one staircase and a kitchen on terrace, the Chief Fire Service Officer said.
In June, a fire at Bhandari House in Mukherjee Nagar’s Batra Complex jeopardised the lives of scores of students taking coaching classes there, raising concerns about the fire safety standards in buildings across the thickly populated area which has coaching centres in just about every nook and corner.
(with PTI inputs)