2 hurt in AFE fire, items worth lakhs gutted; ‘many busy taking videos..’: Read the report here:
Two elderly women suffered injuries in a fire that broke out in a four-storey building in Abul Fazal Enclave on Monday, according to sources. The blaze, reportedly caused by a short circuit in L-Block AFE around 3:15 pm, spread rapidly through the building as thick smoke billowed out.
A resident who captured a few short clips of the chaos following the fire said police and fire brigade officers brought the fire under control after reaching the spot.
Later in the evening, several residents were seen standing outside the building with people from neighbourhood and relatives pouring in to seek their well-being.
Soot marks were still visible an hour later as bakery workers cleaned the ground floor. Another resident said no lives were lost, but property worth lakhs was destroyed.
A resident who took part in the rescue operation told the OT that two women sustained minor hand burns and they were rushed to Al Shifa Hospital for treatment.
An eyewitness who helped in the rescue said around 3.15 pm, when he returned home for lunch, he saw black smoke in the lane while several youngsters recorded videos instead of rescuing two women trapped on the second floor.
“The father and son froze as the fire spread and smoke filled the street. I asked what happened and encouraged them. The son and a few youngsters then joined me in the rescue. Since heavy smoke blocked the entrance, we climbed the adjacent building, broke the water tank, and poured the water onto the flames. Then we climbed down and urged the two elderly women to come up, which is how they were rescued. Later, the administration arrived to take stock of the situation,” he said.
“The fire brigade came a bit late,” said a resident, suggesting it might not have been informed in time or got stuck in traffic.
Residents said safety measures must be implemented and called themselves extremely lucky that the fire didn’t spread to adjoining buildings in the congested lane, where tangled wiring hangs dangerously close to houses. They recalled that just a few months ago, a similar fire had broken out in Shaheen Bagh, gutting a showroom.
The main rescuer lamented that what hurt him most was seeing the entire lane filled with residents, yet no one dared to step forward and help. “It has become common now that in such incidents people’s first reaction is to record videos instead of lending a helping hand,” he said.
