Dharavi fire guts small factories, causes loss of over ₹6 crore

A major blaze on Wednesday morning gutted at least 100 small garment factories, bakeries, godowns, residential units and hutments at the Kamla Nagar and Shahu Nagar areas in Dharavi. While no injuries or casualties were reported in the fire, factory owners have incurred losses of more than ₹6 crore

Mumbai: A major blaze on Wednesday morning gutted at least 100 small garment factories, bakeries, godowns, residential units and hutments at the Kamla Nagar and Shahu Nagar areas in Dharavi. While no injuries or casualties were reported in the fire, factory owners have incurred losses of more than ₹6 crore.

Mumbai, India - February 22, 2023: A major early-morning Level-3 fire broke out with none injured after the blaze erupted in some of the hutments arount 4:15 am. At least 12 fire engines, eight water tankers and other fire brigade vehicles were engaged in the firefighting operation, at Kamala Nagar, Dharavi, in Mumbai, India, on Wednesday, February 22, 2023. (Photo by Vijay Bate/HT Photo (HT PHOTO)

Despite its proximity to Dharavi fire station, firemen found it difficult to navigate the congested area when the fire was reported at 4.22 am. The blaze rapidly engulfed three buildings as well as hutments that housed small businesses. Twelve fire engines, along with eight jumbo tankers, were rushed to the spot.

It took nearly 10 hours to bring the fire under control due to several challenges faced by the firemen. “There was no road to reach the spot, due to which the blaze escalated and reached Level 3,” said chief fire officer Sanjay Manjrekar. “A couple of cylinders also burst, which aggravated it. The firemen had to climb roofs and douse the fire from above. Then they entered the area and reached the fire site through a house gully. Right now, cooling operations are on.”

Factory owners told HT that there was a short circuit on one of the floors of a garment factory. The fire brigade, however, has yet to ascertain the cause. “Investigations are underway,” said Manjrekar.

Mohammed Asim, 40, operates three garment factories in the area. Of his three shops, one was gutted. “There are 40 tailors, who will be unemployed from one gala,” he said. “All the recently bought cloth caught fire and ₹3 lakh worth of sewing machines and ₹6 lakh worth of clothes were destroyed.” Asim, however, said he had incurred the least loss, and there were at least 70 godowns which had incurred a collective loss of over ₹6 crore.

Mohammed Wasim, whose brother’s rental accommodation in a three-storey house was burned down, said, “Naim had just undergone an angioplasty. He ran out barefoot with his family when he heard at 3 am that a fire had occurred nearby and was spreading. His medical reports, along with his medicines and belongings, have been burned to ashes.” The factory workers in this area were all migrants from UP’s Pratapgarh district working as tailors in garment factories, said Wasim. “We are now without work and home,” he said.

Mohammed Kasim Idresi, owner of a garment factory, has 12 workers under him. “I have incurred losses of over ₹3 lakh,” he said. Idresi has not been allowed to enter the area, but said there were sewing machines and garment rolls lying around in the factory. “The labourers will be unemployed now,” he rued.

This is the second fire reported from the Dharavi garment units in the past three weeks. On February 1, a 62-year-old woman was killed in a similar blaze that spread through the small cloth units operating there.

Spread over 2.5 sq km, Dharavi has a population density of 2.27 lakh people per sq km. It is also home to about 5,000 industrial units plus many more unregistered ones. There are estimated to be around 15,000 single room ‘factories’ in Dharavi.

Many of its residents also work in the area in small-scale leather, pottery and textiles businesses. Dharavi is also a hub for international exports, with an estimated annual turnover of $1billion.