Fire breaks out at Noida high-rise after AC unit suffers a short circuit

Following the short-circuit, a fire broke out in the indoor unit, which spread rapidly within the room due to AC gas leakage

A fire broke out on the 10th floor of a high-rise building in Noida’s Sector 100 following a short-circuit in the indoor unit of the air conditioner (AC) on Thursday morning, said district fire officials, adding that the fire was doused within half an hour even before firefighters reached the spot.

Firefighters and society president claimed that the fire was controlled within half-an-hour using the building’s firefighting system. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

Firefighters and society president claimed that the fire was controlled within half-an-hour using the building’s firefighting system. However, HT accessed a photo of the room where the fire broke out and found that the bed, almirah, windows, and clothes kept in the almirah, even the plastering of the room, was damaged in the fire.

“On Thursday around 10.15am, the fire control room was alerted by a resident that a fire broke out on the 10th floor three bedroom flat of Lotus Boulevard in Sector 100,” said Pradeep Kumar Chaubey, chief fire officer, Gautam Budh Nagar.

He said five fire tenders from the surrounding fire stations were rushed to the spot.

“When we reached the spot, the fire was already controlled by the society’s residents and security guards, using the firefighting system of the building. A blast in the AC is suspected to be the reason behind the incident,” Chaubey said.

“During the investigation, it came to fore that a short-circuit occurred in the indoor unit of the AC around 9.55am. Following the short-circuit, a fire broke out in the indoor unit, which spread rapidly within the room due to AC gas leakage,’ said Ankit Bajpayee, sub-inspector, police outpost in-charge, Sector 98.

“Jasneet Bakshi, who is in the merchant navy, took the flat on rent. He resides there with his wife and an eight-year-old son,” said SI Bajpayee, adding that at the time of the incident, he had gone to the gym while his wife was at home.

The SI said, “It was informed that as she turned on the AC, and a short-circuit happened, triggering the fire within a minute.” A video of the incident was shared on social media, and it showed thick smoke billowing out from the 10th floor of the high-rise.

The fire department recently conducted a drive to inspect the district’s high-rise firefighting systems. “During the drive, we found some minor issues in the Lotus Boulevard society, but we rectified the faults,” added CFO Chaubey.

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