At least nine people died after a massive fire broke out in a residential building in Delhi’s Vivek Vihar area of Shahdara early on Sunday morning, police said, adding that more than a dozen residents were rescued during the operation.
The fire was reported in the early hours, with police saying a PCR call was received at 3:48 am at Vivek Vihar police station. Delhi Fire Services (DFS) officials said they were alerted one minute earlier, at 3:47 am, and rushed several teams to the scene. A total of 14 fire engines were deployed by 5am.
The fire spread to several apartments
According to fire officials, the fire broke out in household items and quickly spread to at least six apartments. A fire department spokesman said: “About 12 to 15 people were rescued by the Field Support Department.”
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara) Rajendra Prasad Meena said the fire spread to apartments on the second, third and fourth floors.
He added, “Fire operations rescued 10 to 15 people from the building. Two of them sustained minor injuries and were taken to Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital for treatment.”
The rescue operation lasted for more than five hours
Officials said the firefighting and rescue operation lasted more than five hours due to the complexity of the building’s design and the number of people trapped inside.
DCP Meena noted that the apartments located at the front and back of the building made access difficult for firefighters.
The police, along with Station House Officer (SHO) and Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), reached the spot soon after the alert. In addition to firefighters, teams from the District Disaster Management Authority, traffic police and local police were deployed.
Nine bodies were recovered after the fire
After the fire was brought under control around 6:25 a.m. and completely extinguished after 8 a.m., firefighters began searches inside the building.
A spokesman for the Field Support Department said: “We searched the houses and found charred bodies. One body from the first floor, five bodies from the second floor, and three bodies from the stairs.”
DCP Meena confirmed that nine bodies had been recovered and added: “Further investigation and procedures are underway at the scene.”
Locals suspect an exploding air conditioner to be the cause
Residents of the area suggested that an air conditioner explosion was the cause of the fire, but officials have not yet confirmed the cause.
“An explosion in the air conditioner led to the fire,” said Rohit, a local resident. He added that “about 12 to 15 people were rescued,” while “4 to 5 people are still missing.” He said the fire started “at around 03:13 am”, with fire engines arriving “at around 3:35 am”, news agency ANI reported.
The delivery agent who arrived at the building late at night was the first to notice the fire. By the time he understood the seriousness of the situation, it had already escalated rapidly. In his statement to police, he said he initially saw sparks coming from an external AC outlet.
Another resident, Charanjit Singh, said that “more than 10 vehicles (fire engines) arrived” and “about 20 people” were rescued through the balconies. But he pointed out that “one or two families are still under the building.”
“More than 10 vehicles (fire engines) arrived. The fire brigade rescued about 20 people through the balcony… Some people from the back apartments were still able to get out… I think one or two families are still under the building,” he told ANI.
The victims have been identified
Sharing details of the deceased, the police identified one of the victims from the first floor as Shikha Jain (45).
Among those found on the second floor from the back was a young child, aged 1.5 years. Arvind (60), Anita Jain (58), Nishant Jain (35) and Aanchal Jain (33) were also found on the second floor.
On the third floor, the victims included members of the same family, including Nitin Jain (about 50 years old), his wife Shelly Jain (48 years old), and their son Samyak Jain (25 years old). Navin Jain (48 years old) was reported injured.
CM calls incident ‘very tragic’
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta described the incident as “extremely tragic” and expressed sadness at the loss of lives.
She said in a post on the website
She added that the situation is being closely monitored, with “all senior officials of the local administration, Delhi Disaster Management Authority, Delhi Fire Service and Delhi Police… fully and expeditiously participating in relief and rescue operations.”
