Fire strikes residential and manufacturing units in Byculla West, goods scorched

The workers and fire officials on the site preliminarily estimated there were around four to five of the manufacturing units in the area, some of whom had two to three makeshift storeys and were roofed by iron sheets

Mumbai: A level two fire erupted in Byculla West, striking several structures opposite the Saifee Manizil, including the Jubali building and Dhobighat chawl, on Wednesday morning at around 7:30am, burning an area of 5,000 to 6,000 square feet to the ground.

Firefighters douse the fire that broke out at a Garment shop, at Saifi compound, Sakhali Street Byculla, on Wednesday. (Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo)

Two men and three women had to be evacuated by firemen through the staircase, but no injuries were reported. The fire was extinguished by 12:03pm.

The structure consisted of a hybrid of residential homes and manufacturing cum warehouse units. In the latter, assorted goods like purses, shoulder and trolley bags, shoes, and chappals were made and stored, to then be distributed to shops. Workers who do the stitching and sticking of the items are mainly from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. They worked and stayed within the same four walls. “Five of us were sleeping when a fellow worker came and woke us up with the news of the fire, and we all rushed out,” said Mohammed Maji, who primarily stitched shoulder bags and purses. “We don’t have much of our belongings here, just some clothes.”

The workers and fire officials on the site preliminarily estimated there were around four to five of the manufacturing units in the area, some of whom had two to three makeshift storeys and were roofed by GI sheets. The items stored within were not insured, to their knowledge.

“Two of my relatives owned manufacturing units inside,” said Mohammed Faisan. “They’ve now lost everything and are devastated. The total loss will be somewhere in crores.” According to a police official, the estimation of the loss of goods is under investigation.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, said a fire official, although Faisan suspects it was a short circuit.

When asked where the workers would spend the night, Maji said the owner of the warehouse would arrange for their stay. Another worker, Gufran Khan, who made shoes, said they might have to stay on the footpath or at a friend’s place, perhaps eventually having to go back to their villages if an alternative place of work and stay is not given to them soon.

Three families reside on the top floor in the front of the structure, where the fire had not spread. The thick choking smoke, however, had billowed their way, waking them up suffocating and to the cries of their children.

“We rushed down and stayed on the street till it was safe to come back up after the fire was extinguished and everything was cooled down by around 2pm. We’re lucky the fire didn’t reach our homes,” said Sabahat Rasool, one of the residents. “The manufacturing units have come up here after 2008 when the building had collapsed and was rebuilt by MHADA. There is hardly any ventilation, inflammable liquid and material is used, and the workers live and cook there. That’s why the fire spread to such an extent.”