Mumbaiites, want public spaces to be safer? BMC wants your suggestions

Civic chief Ajoy Mehta also said that citizens who have information about the fire, including photographs or videos can also talk to him personally.

Following reports that people trapped in 1Above could not escape the fire owing to a single narrow entrance, and lack of an emergency fire exit, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has invited suggestions from citizens on how to make public places safer.

The fire at Kamala Mills compound killed 14 people and injured 55 others. (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT Photo)

Civic chief Ajoy Mehta said that people can share suggestions about fire safety with the BMC. He also said that citizens who have information about the fire, including photographs or videos can also talk to him personally.

An official said, “Photographs taken by those who were present at 1Above before the fire, are likely to give BMC perspective.”

The fire brigade’s primary inquiry into the fire has revealed that several people could not exit 1Above after the fire because they could not find the exit door. The passage to the entrance was very narrow, and is likely to have instantly caught fire owing to the bamboo and tarpaulin used for the artificial roof. There were no signs to direct people to the exit.