Thane, Nov 9 As many as 50 persons were rescued after a major fire broke out at a 17-storey residential building in Maharashtra’s Thane city, officials said on Monday.
The blaze erupted around 8.30 pm on Sunday on Diwali at the Carlyle building, with 28 flats, in the Raheja Garden complex in the city’s Wagle Estate area, they said.
No casualties were reported, Thane Municipal Corporation’s (TMC) regional disaster management cell chief Yasin Tadvi said.
The fire spread from the 7th to 14th floors and the duct of the high-rise tower, triggering a major emergency response. To combat the blaze and rescue the residents, authorities mobilised multiple fire tenders, two sky-lift fire engines, water tankers and ambulances.
Firefighters from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) also joined the operations. Advanced tactical measures, including drones, were used to precisely locate the source of the fire and locate occupants trapped on the upper floors, he said.
The emergency responders later evacuated nearly 50 persons, guiding trapped residents to safety via the building’s terrace and designated refuge areas, the official said.
The blaze was brought under control by 2.30 am on Monday, and cooling operations were underway. The cause of the fire is being probed, Tadvi said.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who is also the guardian minister of Thane, visited the site to supervise the rescue operations and take stock of the situation.
He maintained continuous phone contact with residents trapped inside. The Deputy CM hailed the personnel involved in the operation for also rescuing several pets, including dogs and cats, from the smoke-filled premises.
“The cause of the fire is currently under investigation. It is not yet known whether the incident was sparked by a short circuit or triggered by Diwali firecrackers and rockets,” Shinde said.
Thane Lok Sabha member Naresh Mhaske, TMC Commissioner Saurabh Rao, Collector Srikrishna Panchal and Mayor Sharmila Pimplolkar also visited the spot.
(PTI News)
