Luckily, senior cops stop sub-inspector Meghna Burande from entering the lift that took the six firemen in Thane high-rise to their horrifying death on Sunday

Sub-inspector Meghna Burande (32), feels she was born again on Sunday. "I owe my life to Azhar Khan," said Burande. The duty officer at Vartak Nagar was fortunate not to step into the lift at the Punarvasu Building in Tarangan Complex in Thane.

Thank god: Sub-inspector Meghna Burande. pic/varun Singh

A flat in the building caught fire on Sunday and six firemen from Wagle Estate Fire Depot, who rushed to douse the fire, died of asphyxiation, as the lift got stuck because someone unknowingly switched off the power supply.

"When a fire broke out in the building for the second time on Sunday, I rushed to the spot. I was about to step into the lift with the six firemen, but was stopped by my head constable Khan because I could not have been of help upstairs," recalled a relieved Burande.

She added, "Later, when I was told that the six firemen had died of suffocation as the door of the lift did not open, I was numb for a few minutes. After a while, I called my father and told him how I could have died in the accident. He disconnected the line without uttering a word." Burande stays alone in Thane and her parents had specially flown down for Diwali. Sameer Gurade, manager, Tarangan Complex, said, "She couldn't stop thanking God."

'They can use a lift'
Meanwhile, Vijay Vaidya, chief fire officer, Thane, said, "It is not wrong to use a lift during such an emergency. It was the fastest mode to reach the spot. The six firemen did what they felt was best for the situation in the absence of any orders. The lift had a technical snag, which needs to be investigated."

Vaidya added that firemen were wearing fireproof uniforms and also had mobiles and walkie talkies, but had they stopped functioning in the lift. "It was an unfortunate accident that has shocked everyone," said Vaidya.

2 fires in 5 hours
A fire broke out in a 14th floor apartment of Tarangan building for the second time in a span of five hours. "On Laxmi puja on Saturday, a fire broke out in Ravindra Kulkarni's flat at 11 pm. The fire officials managed to douse the fire and asked Kulkarni to evacuate.
Since it was a minor incident triggered by a cracker, it was not reported to the police," said Burande. She added, "After another fire broke out in the same apartment at 4 am, the residents called the fire brigade again." The victims have been identified as J C Singh, Avdhut Thanekar, S R Jamadar, Kishore Patil, S K S Shinde and Tanaji Kale.

Rs 5 lakh
Ex gratia payment announced by the Thane Municipal Corporation to the families of the six deceased firemen
Rs 2 lakh
Compensation announced by Maharashtra CM Ashok Chavan

10 Fire Safety Rules

1.) Don't play with matches and lighters. If you see matches or a lighter where you can reach them, don't touch them. Go tell a grown up right away.