Fire brigade to inspect malls again

The fire that broke out in the basement of Om Heera Panna Mall in Oshiwara on Thursday morning has prompted the fire brigade to inspect again all city malls.

The fire that broke out in the basement of Om Heera Panna Mall in Oshiwara on Thursday morning has prompted the fire brigade to inspect again all city malls.

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The fire brigade will send notices to more than 300 malls, asking if they have adhered to fire safety norms. “We will inspect all the malls again and issue notices if found flouting safety norms and usage of basement,” said Uday Tatkare, chief fire officer.

In March, the fire department had served notices to 20 malls and shopping complexes for violating safety norms, such as drastic changes in the original plan and usage of the building. The fire department had found minor irregularities in 55 other malls.

“The main reason behind any fire is improper cabling, which leads to short circuit. We will issue a new circular within two days to all wards and fire stations on what action to take against those found flouting safety norms,” said S.S. Shinde, joint municipal commissioner.

“During the inspection, we found that the ventilation outlets were blocked in malls, which also lacked several integral components in terms of fire-fighting equipment and facilities,” said a senior fire officer, who refused to reveal the names of the malls.

“It is against the law to keep LPG cylinders in basements. After we lost one of our officers, in a situation that could have been caused by these cylinders, in the fire at Goyal shopping centre in Borivli (West) in February, we are now checking basements far more stringently,” the senior fire officer added.