Hyderabad: Six people, including a week-old baby, were killed in a massive fire that broke out in sheds erected for a film shoot and later spread to a residential building at Poppalaguda on the city`s outskirts, police said Monday.
Three others were injured in the tragedy Sunday night, one of the worst fire accidents in the city in recent times.
The incident occurred at Sriramnagar colony at Poppalaguda in Ranga Reddy district.
Two women and a week-old baby were among those killed. The building watchman died of suffocation after he was trapped in the lift.
After battling for nearly two hours, three fire tenders and fire fighting personnel managed to douse the flames, which had engulfed four floors of the apartment building.
According to police, plastic and other combustible material used for film shooting was dumped in a shed, which caught fire around 8.30 a.m.
Witnesses said that within a few minutes, flames and smoke engulfed the adjacent Baba Nivas apartment. The staircase close to the shed filled with thick smoke, making it impossible for residents to escape.
Locals and fire fighting personnel rescued some people from the other side of the building.
State Home Minister P Sabita Indra Reddy, who rushed to the scene and supervised rescue and relief work, announced an inquiry into the cause of the fire. The blaze was suspected to have been caused by short circuit.
As locals complained that fire tenders reached late, causing the high casualty figure, the home minister explained that the delay was because fire station personnel took time to trace the locality.
She said awareness would be created among the fire services staff about the new residential areas on the city`s periphery.
IANS
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.