Fire brigade reaches spot nearly 45 minutes after the incident, blames narrow road for delay in rescue operation; victims died of severe burns, asphyxiation
The fire broke out inside a flat on the third floor of Maimoon Manzil in Saifi Park Colony, Marol. Pic/ Sayyed Sameer Abedi
Barely a week after the Kamala Mills tragedy that killed 14, another major fire broke out in a residential building in the Marol area of Andheri, leaving four of a family, including two children, dead. All the victims died of severe burn injuries and asphyxiation. According to the Mumbai Fire Brigade, who have termed the fire 'suspicious' in their report, it broke out in a flat on the third floor of a four-storey building of Maimoon Manzil in Saifi Park Colony, Marol, around 2 am today.
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Speaking to mid-day, eyewitness Yahya Cutleriwala, 57, who resides on the second floor of the building, said, "We were sleeping, when my daughter started knocking on the door of my bedroom. She had seen sparks near our window, as the flat above us, was up in flames. We immediately rushed out of the flat without thinking."
Anxious residents waited outside the building as firefighting operations continued
Cutleriwala then alerted the other neighbours, and called up the police control room and fire brigade. "We all rushed down to the building, but found that the safety gate of our wing had been locked. We were all stranded on the staircase. It was only 10 minutes later, after we screamed for help that the watchman opened the latch. I then switched off all the meter boxes and vacated the building with the others," he added.
Rati Ram, 60, security personnel of the society, said that the safety gate is locked at night for security reasons. "We weren't aware of the fire, until we heard the screams. We immediately rushed and got all of them out," he said.
Harish Shetty, divisional fire officer
While the police immediately rushed to the spot, Cutleriwala claimed that the fire brigade did not show up for a long time, despite repeated calls. "The fire officials were confused as to which lane the society was located in. I had to rush in my motorcycle to where they were and bring them to the spot, after which the rescue operations began," he said.
The fire-fighting operations were delayed by around 45 minutes. Around five fire engines and three water tankers were pressed into service.
Harish Shetty, divisional fire officer
Four members of the Kapasi family that resided in the flat where the fire broke out were rushed to Cooper Hospital in Andheri. However, they were declared dead on arrival. The victims have been identified as Dawood Ali Kapasi, 80, Tasneem, 42, Sakina, 14 and Moiz, 10. "Tasneem suffered 40 per cent burns, Moiz suffered 25 per cent burns, while Dawood and Sakina suffered 100 per cent burns. We will be conducting a post-mortem. Prima facie it appears that they died of suffocation and burns," said a doctor at Cooper Hospital.
The only surviving member, Abbasi Kapasi, is currently being questioned by the police, after which a detailed report will be submitted. "Abbasi told the cops that he was in the hall when the fire broke out, while the remaining members were in the bedroom. He tried to save them, but was forced to leave after the fire intensified," a neighbour told mid-day. "Had the fire-fighters reached on time, lives could have been saved," Cutleriwala added.
Yahya Cutleriwala, resident
The fire had also spread to the neighbouring flats occupied by the Kothari family, but they were rescued. Four members of the family, Ibrahim Kothari, 57, Sakina, 58, Hussain, 26 and Hufeza, 21, were shifted to Holy Spirit hospital in Andheri. While Ibrahim is currently admitted to the ICU, the other members are recuperating.
Another resident, Zara Cutleriwala, 43, was also taken to hospital after she developed breathing problems, but was later allowed to go home.
In total, the fire brigade rescued around 17 persons. "The cause of the fire is suspicious. We are investigating the issue," the Mumbai Fire Brigade said.
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