Ghaziabad: 4 flats damaged in high-rise fire in Indirapuram

One of the four flats that was engulfed in fire was not occupied as the family was not in town, residents of other flats escaped before the blaze fully covered their houses

Four flats of the Arihant Harmony high-rise in Indirapuram, Ghaziabad, suffered major damage in a fire on Saturday afternoon, fire department officials said, adding that there were no casualties. The likely cause of the fire was overheating in a diesel generator (DG) set, officials said, adding that two DG sets were gutted in the blaze.

The maintenance staff of the housing society said the fire began around 12.20pm in one of the two DG sets of 125kw and 250kw kept near the main entrance and spread to a nearby residential tower to a height of 15-20 metres. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

The Arihant Harmony high-rise in Ahimsa Khand 2 pocket, Indirapuram, has 150 flats. The maintenance staff of the housing society said the fire began around 12.20pm in one of the two DG sets of 125kw and 250kw kept near the main entrance and spread to a nearby residential tower to a height of 15-20 metres.

“When the fire broke out, I tried to call the fire emergency number but could not connect. Then I took the help of another person and informed the fire department. The fire tenders arrived at 1pm. By that time, the fire was raging and had gutted two 200-litre diesel drums and engulfed the front portion of a nearby residential tower. Four flats in the tower suffered major damage due to their proximity to the DG sets on fire,” said BK Pandey, manager of the high-rise.

Pandey said that one of the four flats which was engulfed in fire was not occupied as the family was not in town. Residents of the other flats escaped before the fire fully engulfed their houses. Fire officials said they sent five fire tenders to the scene and brought the blaze under control within 45 minutes.

“We received the call about the fire around 12.34pm and rushed fire tenders to the high-rise. However, traffic on the CISF-Road delayed the tenders. We also called up the police and sought their help to clear traffic to ease the movement of fire tenders. The fire probably began due to the overheating of DG sets. Four flats on the ground, first, second, and third floors were damaged. There was no loss of life or injury reported to anyone,” said Rahul Pal, chief fire officer.

Brijesh Pathak, whose third-floor flat suffered major damage, said, “I was out for some work when my wife called me and told me about the fire. I asked her to snap the electricity supply and rush out of the flat...The walls of my flat developed cracks while almost all electronic and electrical appliances were damaged or melted from the heat. ACs, refrigerator, TVs, and furniture were completely damaged,” Pathak said.

Pandey said, “We have arranged for the three families to stay in vacant flats in the high-rise. We have also arranged for a structural engineer to inspect the tower’s structural safety in the aftermath of the fire. The two DG sets of the society have been completely gutted.”

Meanwhile, neighbouring residents said the delay in the response by the fire department could have resulted in the fire spreading to adjacent high-rises. “Indirapuram has several high-rises and we expect fire tenders to be stationed locally so that they can respond in time and avert any major mishap,” said Rupak Mukhopadhyaya, a resident of the nearby Balaji Residency.

The chief fire officer said that the department stations a fire tender from the afternoon to 10pm every day at several locations to tackle fire incidents during peak summer. “One fire tender each is stationed at Kala Patthar (Indirapuram), Tila Morh, Roop Nagar Industrial Area, Muradnagar, district collectorate and Crossings Republik (24 hours), besides the others available at our fire stations. These tenders are deputed locally from afternoon (around noon to 1pm) to 10pm every day,” the CFO added.