Delhi: Shoe godown gutted in Peeragarhi, four workers missing

More than 100 fire fighters and 35 fire tenders worked for nearly eight hours to douse the flames. However, the cooling and search operations were on.

Four people are suspected to have been trapped inside a large shoe godown in Udyog Nagar near Peeragarhi in outer Delhi that went up in fire on Monday, officials of the fire and police departments said. There were at least 10 people inside the building when the blaze started. While six of them were rescued, four are still missing.

Firefighters at work at shoe factory in Peeragarhi Udyog Nagar in outer Delhi. (Delhi Fire Services)

More than 100 fire fighters and 35 fire tenders worked for nearly eight hours to douse the flames. However, the cooling and search operations were on.

The owner of the godown and the family members of the missing people told the police and fire officials that they were not able to contact the workers on their mobile phones. Initially, their cellphones were working as the calls were going through but nobody was responding. Later, the phones went unreachable. Of the four missing persons, two are brothers, fire officials said, quoting the information shared by the family members.

“It was a major category fire and a tough operation for our men because inflammable materials such as shoes and packing materials were stored in huge quantity in the godown. As far as casualties are concerned, we have not found any bodies so far. But at least four people are feared to be trapped inside. Until our search operation is complete, we cannot say they are dead or alive,” said Delhi Fire Services chief Atul Garg.

According to Garg, the fire was reported to the control room at 8.22am. Initially, 24 fire tenders were sent. Later, 11 more were rushed to the spot considering the intensity of the blaze.

He said nobody informed the firefighters about 10 workers who used to sleep in the godown. “Initially, nobody told us about the people who were inside. We would have begun the rescue operation had we been told about the missing persons in the beginning. By the time we were informed, the fire had engulfed the entire godown. We did not rescue anyone from the building till evening,” said Garg.

Deputy commissioner of police (outer) Parvinder Singh said the godown is owned by Pankaj Garg who runs a company named Apeksha International. “Initially, 10 people were reported trapped inside the godown. Four of them who were on the ground floor rushed out of the building. Later, two more persons came out themselves. Four are still reported to be inside. The search operation is on. Two ambulances were called to the spot,” said DCP Singh.

Locals said that of the six men who survived, two jumped off the first floor of the godown. Fire and police officials said that the godown is spread in nearly 1,000 square metres and consists of two buildings, each having a basement, ground and first floor. The entire premises has a tin ceiling and was packed with shoes, slippers, and packaging materials such as boxes and adhesives.

“The presence of such inflammable items in huge quantity helped the fire spread quickly. Since the entire godown and materials are gutted, there is strong heat and smoke that is delaying our search operation. If there are human bodies inside, it’s very difficult to find them in the heap of burnt material. The tin roof collapsed while cracks have developed in the buildings and have now been declared dangerous by the municipal authority,” said Garg, who himself was leading the fire fighting and search operation.

HT tried to contact the company’s owner and its representative on the phone numbers mentioned on the internet. A person who responded to the call identified himself as the owner’s brother-in-law but refused to comment on the matter.

Police said that a case was being registered. The exact trigger of the fire was not known till late evening.

Garg said that the godown did not have any fire fighting arrangement and its owner had not sought a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the fire department. “We have learnt that another fire had taken place in the godown in the past. The exact date and year is not known yet. Since the godown did not have an NOC or fire fighting arrangement, we will write a letter to the local administration for taking action against the owner,” the fire chief added.

The search operation in the godown was suspected late in the evening and is expected to resume Tuesday morning.