Woman jumps after flat in Delhi catches fire, dies

Deputy commissioner of police (Dwarka) Ankit Singh identified the deceased woman as Jasuri Devi and the granddaughter as Pooja Pant

An 83-year-old woman died while her 30-year-old granddaughter sustained minor injuries after they jumped from their fourth-floor apartment to save themselves from a fire that broke out in their house, in Sector 10, Dwarka, on Wednesday morning, the Delhi Police said.

A fire broke out in a flat in Dwarka Sector 10 on Wednesday. (ANI)

Deputy commissioner of police (Dwarka) Ankit Singh identified the deceased woman as Jasuri Devi and the granddaughter as Pooja Pant, residents of Pacific Apartments.

Police said that the cause of the fire was yet to be ascertained but it started around 12pm, and they suspected it to be a gas leak. Police added that the crime team of the forensic science laboratory in Rohini visited the spot.

Delhi Fire Services director Atul Garg said they received a call regarding the blaze at 12.22pm after which six fire tenders were pressed into service. “The fire was in domestic articles on the fourth floor and spread to the fifth floor. Two women jumped from the balcony of the fourth floor to save themselves. They were rushed to a private hospital right outside the apartment complex where the senior citizen was declared dead on arrival,” said Garg.

A fire department official who attended the call said that the nearest fire station was in Sector 6 and they took around 10 minutes to reach the spot after the call. “The two women jumped before we reached. Because they were in a state of panic, residents gathered and instigated them to jump on the mattresses and blankets instead of waiting for the fire brigade. The elderly woman at her age might have had mobility issues as well. We may have saved them both if they had not jumped,” said the official.

A member of the Pacific Apartments Residents Welfare Association, who was present at the spot, said Devi and her granddaughter were the only two members at home when the blaze happened. Devi’s son Mahesh Pant, a retired bank official, was out for some work. “The fire is suspected to have started inside the house. It was raging on the balcony. We believe that the Devi and Pooja could not reach the exit door because of fire or thick smoke which is why they came to the balcony,” the resident said.

The resident also said that the women were shouting for help so the neighbours brought mattresses and blankets and laid them on the ground. “The fire department and police were both on time but before the fire brigade reached, they decided to jump. We think they panicked. The granddaughter jumped first and on the mattresses but the woman hit her head on the concrete floor,” he said.

The fire was brought under control by 12.50pm and doused completely by 1.05pm, the fire official said.

According to residents, Pooja is married and lives with her husband in Japan. “She was here on vacation to meet her father and grandmother. Her mother died a few years ago,” the resident said.