They don't have electricity or water supply, but that has failed to budge residents of Crystal Tower, which caught fire on Wednesday. With officials unable to seal the building after a seventh-floor family refused to leave on Wednesday night, many others, especially those with flats on the lower floors, have decided to stay put too, saying the fire was confined to wiring in the electric duct from the 12th to 16th floors.

On Wednesday, the chief fire officer had declared the tower unsafe and informed the disaster management cell and ward officials to disconnect electricity and water supply. "While power remains cut, water supply was stopped during the rescue. Whether or not it will be restarted will be decided by the Hydraulic Engineering department of the BMC," said Kishor Desai, assistant civic chief of F-south ward.