Huge fire engulfs govt HQ in Mumbai; 16 hurt

Agencies/Mumbai

Firefighters try to douse a blaze at the Mantralaya, the Maharashtra state government’s headquarters, in Mumbai, yesterday

A huge fire broke out at the state government headquarters in Mumbai yesterday, injuring several people and forcing the evacuation of hundreds of officials as it engulfed the building’s upper floors. Fire engines and emergency teams rushed to the Mantralaya in the city’s southern business district and at least 16 people were hurt, one of them seriously, officials said. Television footage showed people being taken out of the secretariat building on stretchers. Earlier pictures had shown several people on balconies, desperate to be saved by rescue workers using ladders as smoke billowed across the city. Sixty-five people trapped on the fifth and sixth floors were evacuated by firefighters, Relief and Rehabilitation Secretary Pravin Pardeshi said. Navy helicopters also joined the rescue operation after the blaze broke out in the afternoon and raged for several hours, with flames fanned by the sea breeze. Mantralaya is the headquarters of the government of Maharashtra state and the chief minister’s office was among those damaged in the blaze. Maharashtra Chief Secretary J K Banthia said dozens of people who were trapped in the building had been taken out. “There are no more people inside,” he said at a press conference.But the press conference which was also attended by some ministers turned stormy after journalists and a section of secretariat employees demanded to know how such an inferno could spread so fast in a high security complex.Chief Minister Prithviraj Chauhan looked sombre as he entered the complex with the building still on fire in the evening. He avoided journalists.“I climbed down a water pipe to escape the flames,” said a breathless man who added that others made similar attempts to escape by clutching to thick electricity cables and drainage pipes.There were frightening scenes as employees, including women, in the higher floors frantically tried to get out.Many crowded balconies or perched on window sills and on ledges outside the windows. All of them were taken down by the Mumbai Fire Service using lift ladders.Officials admitted a sea of official documents had been destroyed.Earlier, a man who escaped claimed that some 50 people were trapped in the building, spreading panic.Rescue workers appealed to those trapped to get to the roof so they could be rescued by navy helicopters.Several Marine Commandos joined the rescue operations.Throughout the fire, more and more fire engines with their sirens wailing raced to the burning Mantralaya from other parts of the city.The landmark building, in the heart of South Mumbai, employs some 1,500 men and women. Every day it gets an equal number of visitors.Tribal Welfare Minister Babanrao Pachpute was among the first to try to fight the massive fire.“I was working as usual in my chamber. Suddenly, I heard an explosion and saw a lot of smoke coming out,” Pachpute, whose office is on the fourth floor, said.He said he thought it was a minor fire, and grabbed a fire extinguisher and attempted to douse it.On seeing thick smoke, Pachpute raised the alarm and asked all the people in his office to vacate.“I also informed the fire brigade, called my home and went to the chambers of Rural Development Minister Jayant Patil and we went out of the building together,” said Pachpute.Officials said the fire, which began on the fourth floor and quickly spread to the top of the seven-floor building, was suspected to have been caused by an electrical short-circuit.Pune mall catches fire, 15 rescuedAt least 15 customers and employees were rescued from shopping mall in Pune after a major fire that broke yesterday evening, officials said. “The fire broke out in the basement of the Koregaon Plaza, a mall in the Koregaon Park area. So far we have rescued around 15 people and are trying to ascertain if more people are inside. Till now, there are no casualties,” Pune’s Chief Fire Officer Prashant Ranpise said. The blaze, which broke out around 5.15pm quickly spread to the first floor and the surrounding areas. Ranpise said that a warehouse belonging to retail giant Shoppers Stop was virtually gutted. The entire area has been cordoned off, all shoppers from the remaining floors and surrounding areas have been evacuated as the fire brigade continued to fight the blaze.