Two people died and several persons were feared trapped inside the store after a fire broke out at an electronics and hardware store in Mumbai.
The incident took place in the wee hours of Monday, March 27 near Sakinaka Metro station near Peninsula Hotel at Andheri (East). The shop was a ground plus two lofts structure.
According to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) official, a loft of the said structure, which had a large stock of material, had fallen causing difficulty for fire brigade staff in entering shop.
Five fire tenders immediately reached at the spot. The fire was extinguished after 9 hours, around 11 am. However, the cooling operations went on for a few more hours as the BMC had to call in an excavator to remove the materials from the shop. The upper lofts were later pulled down by the BMC.
The fire was confined to the electric wiring, electric installations and large stock of hardware at the Rajshree hardware. The front portion of the structure is being demolished with the help of JCB.
The deceased have been identified as Rakesh Gupta, 22, and Ganesh Sabaram Devashi, 23, who hailed from Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan respectively. Their bodies were handed over to their siblings and cousins who were in the city, the police said.
Mumbai fire brigade senior official said that nearly 12 people were inside the shop when the blaze was reported around 2 am. While others could run out, the two were trapped after part of the upper loft collapsed.
According to BMC officials, the fire engulfed the electric wirings, electric installations and a large stock of hardware present inside the shop.
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