Video: Level III fire breaks out at Crystal Tower near Hindmata Cinema in Parel, 4 dead

A massive fire broke out at a posh residential building in Mumbai’s Parel area on Wednesday morning.

According to officials, the fire broke out on the 12th floor of Crystal Tower building, located near Hindmata Cinema, around 8:30 am. The fire brigade control room got a message about the incident shortly after.

The fire, initially pegged as Level II, was subsequently escalated to Level III due to its severity.

The smoke from the raging fire spread rapidly and residents were trapped on the building’s staircases, Mumbai Fire Brigade chief P S Rahangdale said.

Efforts were on to douse the flames and rescue the residents of the building.

At least 20 fire tenders, officials of the Mumbai Police and electrical mechanics were on the spot and they were making efforts to control the blaze.

The presence of several emergency vehicles on the main road also affected the flow of traffic on Ambedkar Road.

The blaze, initially confined to the 12th floor, had spread to two more upper floors as of publishing this report. Crystal Tower has 16 floors.

Further details were awaited.

The incident comes two months after a similar blaze broke out on the top floors of Beaumonde Towers in Mumbai’s Prabhadevi area.

Update:

(10 am) Several residents have been rescued with the help of cranes. Eight of them, who complained of breathing problems, have been rushed to KEM hospital.

#UPDATE: 20 fire tenders rushed to Crystal Tower near Hindmata Cinema in Parel where fire broke out on 12th floor of the tower. No casualties reported till now. People trapped inside being rescued using cranes.Some people taken to hospital after rescue.Rescue operation on.#Mumbai pic.twitter.com/VDLuYdDIqE

— ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2018

(10:30 am) The fire has been brought under control and no casualties have been reported so far. Fire brigade officials are currently inside the building to search for any trapped persons.

(11 am) As per the latest update, two people were brought dead to KEM hospital and a total of 14 persons were injured in the blaze.

(12 pm) The death toll has risen to four, one senior female and three males. Two of them have been identified as Subhadha Shelke (62) and Bablu Shaikh (36), while the identities of the remaining persons is still unknown.

The other 16 persons (10 male, six female) who were injured in the mishap are in a stable condition. The fire department, meanwhile, has deemed the building unsafe for habitation and cut the power & water supply.

The responsible society official is likely to face criminal charges in connection with the incident, which the fire department has now classified as Level IV.

#UPDATE:14 fire engines are here.Situation under control. Fire fighting ops over,cooling ops is on.Complaint to be lodged on charges of criminal offence against the responsible society official.Building declared unsafe;power&water supply stopped for now:Fire Dept official #Mumbai pic.twitter.com/4MqQEkTpqz

— ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2018