Fire rips through GB Road building, top floor partially collapses

A four-storey building — that partially serves as a brothel in central Delhi’s GB Road — went up in flames on Thursday evening, prompting the evacuation of dozens

A four-storey building — that partially serves as a brothel in central Delhi’s GB Road — went up in flames on Thursday evening, prompting the evacuation of dozens of sex workers and their customers.

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The fire continued to rage for more than two hours and a spate of cylinder blasts on the upper floors caused the top floor to collapse partially, firemen present at the spot said. “There is a possibility of further collapse,” said Rajesh Shukla, a senior fire officer present at the spot.

No deaths or injuries were reported till 10pm on Thursday, as fire officers shouted out to any possible victims who may have been trapped inside.

The blaze broke out on either the second or the third floor of the building around 7 pm, said Atul Garg, director, Delhi Fire Services. Like many buildings in the market, the ground floor serves as a shop while the upper floors are brothels.

“Sex workers have told us that the incident was due to a short circuit,” said a local police officer, not authorised to speak to the media.

“There were 60-70 sex workers and their customers inside when the incident took place. It was peak working hours for many,” said a police officer. “All of them luckily managed to escape from the building in time. We were also able to rescue two pet dogs from the building,” said the police officer.

The fire later spread to all the three floors, including the upper floors that housed wooden cabins that aided the spread of the blaze.

“The impact of the blaze was such that the top floor partially collapsed. There is a fear of further collapse. We can’t say if the building will be in a position to be occupied again,” said Shukla.

For the night, the police are making arrangements at the local police post and other places to house the sex workers, an officer said.