Fire at Beadonpura factory claims four lives

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 19

Four persons were killed in a fire incident at a factory in central Delhi after one of them, a heavy built man, got stuck at the exit door while escaping the building and blocked the route for others, said Atul Garg, chief fire service officer.

According to additional DCP Amit Sharma (central), six workers were present at the first floor and they were ironing clothes. Ajit was putting white solvent in a spray machine that caught fire.

The owner of the factory Ajay Khurana (45) has been apprehended and booked under 304 IPC.

Delhi Fire Service (DFS) officials said the fire started at 12.23 pm at Karol Bagh's Beadonpura after a solvent used for laundering clothes spilled out on the floor accidentally. Two fire tenders brought the fire under control by 12.50 pm.

On receiving the call about the fire, when the firefighters reached the spot, they found victims involved in laundering clothes, said an official.

A heavy-built man, who was sitting near the door, tried to get out of the exit door and got stuck. This blocked the route for others who were inside the building, the officer added.

The deceased have been identified as Bhagan Prasahad (55), Ram (40), Aarti (20) and Asha (40). Ajit (23) was injured and has been admitted to a hospital, police said.

As per a senior DFS official, DFS is worried about the increasing number of deaths in the fire incidents occurring in residential area turned commercial. In fact, the factory where the fire took place, there are no proper arrangements of fire safety available.

Commercial activities continue in the residential areas keeping aside the safety norms against fire outbreak. That is why, in this fire incident, the fire immediately turned to be dangerous. The fire department officials are of the opinion that people should be made aware about the measures of fire safety. And commercial activities in residential areas should be dealt strictly, Garg added.