Mumbai: Fire Breaks Out In Chembur's Siddharth Colony; 7 Dead

The incident took place at 5.30 am in Chembur East's Siddharth Colony. The fire broke out due to a short circuit, the BMC said.

Mumbai (Maharashtra):Five members of a family, including two toddlers aged seven and 10 years died in a fire that broke out in a grocery shop-cum-residence in Mumbai's Chembur suburb, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC's) Disaster Control said here on Sunday.

The victims have been identified as Paris Gupta (7), Narendra Gupta (10), Manju Prem Gupta (30), Prem Gupta (30), Anita Gupta (30), Vidhi Chediram Gupta (15) and Gitadevi Dharamdev Gupta (60). They were all in deep sleep and did not notice the fire.

The incident took place at 5.30 am at Siddharth Colony along Chembur East’s AN Gaikwad Marg. As per the preliminary investigation, the fire broke out due to a short circuit, the BMC said. The building had a shop on the ground floor and the upper one served as a residential unit.

The fire department received a call at around 5.30 am following which they rushed to the spot and doused the flames. The BMC said that the fire was of level one type and was confined to electric wiring and electric installation of the shop that later spread to other household appliances.

Four fire engines, a water tanker, and senior officials of the Mumbai Fire Brigade and BMC were at the site monitoring the firefighting operations this morning. The victims were taken to the state-run Rajawadi Hospital, where they were declared dead, BMC officials said.

Two others suffered injuries and have been admitted to hospital for treatment. Locals said that they made frantic efforts to save the Gupta family trapped there but they couldn't succeed. A senior police official said that they are investigating the case with forensic aid.

This is not the first case of a massive fire in Mumbai. On Saturday, a massive fire burnt to ashes an entire warehouse in adjoining Thane district. The V Logistics warehouse in a village in Bhiwandi taluka, about 40 km from Mumbai, caught fire late on Friday night.