Kalbadevi blaze: Fire brigade loses its chief

The Mumbai fire brigade lost its chief yesterday Sunil Nesarikar chief fire officer breathed his last at the National Burns Centre in Airoli yesterday after battling for his life with his 50 per cent burn injuries Nesarikar is the fourth fireman to die due to injuries sustained while trying to douse the blaze in Kalbadevirsquos Gokul Niwas earlier this monthNesarikar is the fourth fireman to die due to injuries sustained while trying to douse the blaze in Kalbadevirsquos Gokul Niwas earlier this month File picNesarikar had 50 per cent level 3 burn injuries after he got trapped in the debris when Gokul Niwas collapsed due to the fire He had been operated on twice at the Airoli hospital within six hours of being admitted While doctors said both surgeries had gone well the sepsis infection due to the wounds had wreaked havoc upon Nesarikarrsquos bodySunil Nesarikar was in the middle of a second dialysis when he died due to multiple organ failureldquoHis condition started deteriorating on Saturday Till that point he had been responding to treatment and we felt we could save him despite the severity of his injuries Though we had already performed surgeries to prevent sepsis his organs started failing one by onerdquo said Dr Sunil Keswani the doctor who was treating NesarikarDr Sunil Keswani of National Burns Centre in Airoli called Nesarikar a visionary and said he couldrsquove transformed the fire departmentThe fireman had been suffering from pulmonary lung issues due to sepsis and had already undergone a dialysis session in the afternoon on Saturday He was in the middle of a second session when he died due to multiple organ failure in the afternoon yesterdayDr Keswani expressed his regret on being unable to save Nesarikar but said he had pulled out all the stops to try and snatch the fire official from the jaws of death ldquoDespite it being a Sunday I had called my entire team of senior doctors so we werenrsquot short of handsI spent a lot of time with him during his admission period I prayed for his wellbeing He kept saying he had faith in merdquo Dr Keswani recalledFriend and visionaryDr Keswani had an emotional bond with Nesarikar whom he knew for the last ten years and had seen him rise through the ranks of the fire brigade to become its chief ldquoHe was probably the only patient with whom I was emotionally attachedrdquo he saidThe duo had similar interests and would meet occasionally to discuss various topics The conversation Dr Keswani recalled would be strange since both would speak in different tongues ldquoHe had excellent command over English but being a Maharashtrian would speak in MarathiI can understand Marathi but would fail to put my point across in his language So I would answer him in English We would go on in such a manner for hoursrdquo Dr Keswani lamented Dr Keswani felt Nesarikar was an officer with the will and vision needed to transform the fire brigadeldquoA year ago he had come to the hospital to talk about skin donation He had a vision to change the fire brigade He always talked about how the firefighters and employees need to seek the path of yoga and follow a healthy regime to stay fit and be able to do the duties to their fullest capacitiesDuring our conversation he would talk passionately about upgrading the equipment training programmes and giving a polished face to the department Had he stayed a few more years as the CFO he would have worked wonders for the departmentrdquo Keswani told midday Sudhir Amin deputy chief fire officer and firemen S W Rane and M N Desai also lost their lives to the Kalbadevi fire