The old and dilapidated buildings in the city, especially in commercial areas like Kalbadevi, are firetraps and blazes in such buildings make rescue operations more challenging, said Chief Fire Officer P D Karguppikar
The old and dilapidated buildings in the city, especially in commercial areas like Kalbadevi, are firetraps and blazes in such buildings make rescue operations more challenging, said Chief Fire Officer P D Karguppikar.
His comments came in the wake of the fire that broke out on the third floor of the 100-year-old Shroff Mansion, a commercial-cum-residential building in Zaveri Bazaar on Wednesday, killing two persons.
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"The old buildings are supported on wooden logs and even the staircase and flooring is made of wood. The wood helps fire spread rapidly, making it more challenging for us to douse the blaze," explained Karguppikar.
"Fire accidents in old buildings have seen an alarming rise, as modern fire fighting measures are largely absent in old buildings and these structures do not adhere to safety norms," he said.
Statistics reveal that among the 1,200-odd old buildings (prior to 1969), most of which are located in South Mumbai, majority of them house zari and jewellery making units, he said. "People don't realise that these small scale industries inside the buildings are responsible for making them more combustible," the fire officer said.
Adding that strict action has to be taken to ensure that residential and commercial activities don't take place under the same roof, Karguppikar said the Zaveri Bazaar incident was a wake up call for old buildings in Mumbai.u00a0
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