[Most of the victims succumbed to smoke inhalation, according to Sunil Choudhary, deputy chief fire officer. “The iron gate of the building was locked from outside,” he said. “The whole building became a gas chamber.”]
By Niha Masih and
Tania Dutta
 |
|
Medical
officers and police walk near the site of a fire in New Delhi on Sunday.
(Manish
Swarup/AP)
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NEW
DELHI — At least 43 people
died, and a dozen more were injured early Sunday in a fire that swept through a
small factory in India’s capital, police said. It was second-deadliest fire in
Delhi history.
Rescue operations took nearly four hours and
involved 30 fire engines and 150 personnel. The fire, reported at 5:20 a.m.,
broke out on the second floor of the five-story building. Atul Garg, chief of
Delhi Fire Services, said the cause was not immediately clear as responders
focused on the rescue.
Images shared by local media showed narrow
corridors blackened with soot and charred materials. Police said most of the
deceased were workers who lived in the factory, where they made school bags and
purses. The majority were poor migrants from the state of Bihar.
“I saw bodies being taken in sacks,” said
Sarfaraz Nabi, who runs an electrical shop nearby. “Police and rescue teams
also carried some on their shoulders. It was a painful sight.”
Babur Ali, another neighbor, said locals
rushed in to save people. “I went to the third floor to knock on doors, but the
rooms were locked from inside, and people were fast asleep,” Ali said. “We ran
out of the building for our lives.”
Garg said the factory was in a residential
area in central Delhi near Rani Jhansi Road and had no provisions for fire
safety. Congested lanes and dilapidated buildings with illegal manufacturing
workshops dot the area where the accident took place.
Most of the victims succumbed to smoke
inhalation, according to Sunil Choudhary, deputy chief fire officer. “The iron
gate of the building was locked from outside,” he said. “The whole building
became a gas chamber.”
Choudhary said officials were investigating
the possibility the fire was caused by a short circuit.
There was chaos at the Lok Nayak Hospital as
family members ran between the emergency ward and the mortuary in search of
loved ones. Abdul Kareem, 35, heard of the fire and called his relative
Mohammad Shakir, a worker at the factory, multiple times. Finally, he was
directed to the hospital. “We have been waiting to hear from the doctors or anyone
who could at least tell us if he is alive or dead,” Kareem said.
Mehboob Alam, 60, was waiting at the mortuary
for news of two nephews. “My elder brother called me in the morning crying,” he
said. “Imran had called his father scared that he would not survive.” By early
evening, Imran’s body was found. Alam continued to search “hopelessly” for his
other nephew.
Deadly fires are common in India, with fire
safety regulations poorly enforced and illegal construction rampant. Small
factories often operate illegally in cramped residential buildings without any
safety measures in place. A fire at a Delhi hotel this year killed 17 people
and prompted an outcry over fire safety measures in buildings in the capital.
Imran Hussain, a minister in the Delhi state
government, called Sunday’s fire a “tragic incident.” He said an investigation
will be conducted and action taken against those found responsible. Delhi’s
chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, visited the site and announced compensation to
the families of the victims.
Delhi suffered its worst fire in 1997 when
flames blazed through a movie theater during a screening, killing 59 people and
injuring more than 100.
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