Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Oct 9: At least five people, including two children, were injured in a fire caused by a gas leak at a hostel on the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay campus in Powai on Thursday night.
All the injured were taken to hospitals for treatment. Four were referred to Kasturba Hospital, while one is undergoing treatment at Rajawadi Hospital. All five are said to be in stable condition.
The injured children have been identified as Ansh Ahirwar, 12, and Tahzeeb Alam, 9. Both were referred to Kasturba Hospital. Ishwar Singh, 37, is being treated at Rajawadi Hospital, while Shiv Kumar Singh, 34, and Anil Kumar Yadav, 23, were taken to Kasturba Hospital.
According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the fire broke out at Hostel Number 6 on the IIT campus at around 10.24 pm. Police personnel and BMC ward staff were deployed at the spot following the incident.
Earlier on Thursday, another fire broke out at a ground-plus-one-storey labour camp at the BMC's Project Affected Persons (PAP) project in Tata Colony, Mulund East, triggering panic among workers living there.
The camp is located within a project complex intended to rehabilitate families displaced from Dharavi. The project is reportedly being developed by the Shapoorji Pallonji Group. Several workers fled the premises following the outbreak, leading to chaos in the area.
The fire was suspected to have been triggered by a gas cylinder explosion. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone East 3) Abhaysinha Deshmukh said seven gas cylinders had exploded during the incident.
“All occupants of the premises were safely evacuated,” Deshmukh said, adding that the exact cause of the fire was being investigated.
Around 15 fire engines, ambulances, Navghar police personnel and senior police officers reached the spot after receiving information about the incident. Fire brigade teams worked to bring the blaze under control.
Police said all occupants had been safely evacuated and no casualties had been reported in the labour camp incident. Security arrangements were also put in place at the site.