Mumbai: Fire brigade found it difficult to access spot

While Sagar Shailesh Sharma (7), who had arrived in Mumbai with his mother to celebrate Chhath puja, and his uncle Vicky Sharma (22) died, his grandfather Lalkishore Sharma (50) sustained 30 per cent burns.

With fire engines finding it difficult to access the spot, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) now plans to send a letter to the SRA to clear the obstruction. Prashant Gaikwad, Assistant Municipal Commissioner of K-west (Andheri, Jogeshwari), told The Indian Express, “Construction work on a building is going on in the opposite side. There was construction material kept on the roadside and some vehicles were parked, which obstructed the movement of fire-fighting vehicles. I am waiting for the fire brigade’s preliminary report after which we will send a letter to SRA.”

By 9 pm on Tuesday, the living room, open kitchen and the passage leading to the bedroom in the 1 BHK flat on the tenth floor where the Sharmas lived was gutted. A cylinder in the kitchen had caught fire. Fire officials used a hosepipe to first control the fire in the kitchen passage leading to the bedroom to rescue three persons, Shailesh Sharma, Sarita Sharma and their 10-year-old daughter.

“The entire door of the bedroom was on fire, we found three persons in the balcony of the bedroom. They told us two more family members were in the hall,” said S K Bandkar, assistant divisional fire officer. He said while there were no major violations in the SRA building, the flat where the Sharmas resided had two cylinders and two appliances to cook (sigri). “There should be one cylinder and it must be placed on a high platform. The cylinder that caught fire was on the floor of the drawing room,” Bandkar said.

The bodies of Vicky Sharma and Sagar Sharma were found crouched next to one another and charred beyond identification in the balcony of the living room, hidden behind a sofa which was gutted in the fire. “I lost a piece of my heart,” wailed Vicky’s mother as the two were cremated on Wednesday afternoon.

Rajul Patel, a former corporator of the area, said, “The building had a narrow access which made it difficult for fire engines to access it. We will raise this issue in the BMC and with SRA.”

According to local resident Madhukar Safe, there is limited space for parking fire engines and water tankers. The building is located on a patch of land surrounded by residential buildings. An uneven pathway is the only access from a narrow road off Veera Desai road. Meanwhile, residents of Andheri and Lokhandwala claimed that in BMC’s development plan, a fire station was proposed in Chitrakoot ground, but in its absence fire brigade from Goregaon and Vile Parle have to be deployed.

Dhaval Shah of Lokhandwala Oshiwara Citizen’s Association said, “Since last 20 years, nothing has happened on the proposal. Currently, the nearest fire station for Lokhandwala and for major part of Andheri is the Irla fire station. Considering current traffic and condition of roads in this area it takes more time for fire engines to reach the spot.”