5 elderly die in fire at Sangam building, Chembur
5 persons, aged between 51 and 83 years, died in the mishap
Five senior citizens were killed and two others, including a fireman, were injured in a major fire that engulfed the top floors of a residential building in Mumbai’s Chembur area on Thursday night.
The fire broke out on the 10th floor of the 16-storied Sangam building in Tilak Nagar and quickly spread upwards, trapping many of the residents inside.
“The blaze started on the 10th floor of the building, Sargam Society (G+16), located near Ganesh Garden in Tilak Nagar,” an official from the Disaster Management Unit of the BMC was quoted as saying.
At least ten fire tenders and five water tankers were dispatched to contain the Level-III blaze.
“Our fire brigade control room got information about the incident at 7.51 pm after which our fire-fighting team along with an ambulance rushed to the spot,” the official added.
The blaze was brought under control by 10:30 pm and cooling operations continued through the night.
Of the seven casualties rushed to the Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar, five were pronounced dead.
The victims have been identified as Sunita Joshi (72), Bhalchandra Joshi (71), Suman Shrinivas Joshi (83), Sarala Suresh Gangar (52) and Lakshmiben Premji Gangar (83).
A senior male citizen, Shrinivas Joshi (86), along with fireman Chhagan Singh (28) have been admitted and are being treated for suffocation.
While the exact cause of the fire is not yet known, officials suspect a short-circuit may have led to the mishap.
Near 150 families of the society have been asked to find alternate accommodation for the next few days as the building’s power supply has been disconnected.
