350 people rescued as fire, smoke engulf mall in Thane
THANE: More than 350 people were rescued after a fire broke out on Saturday afternoon at Lake City Mall. Balkum fire brigade took three hours to douse the fire and cooling operations continued late into the night. Two people, including one firefighter, have been admitted to a private hospital after they complained of breathing difficulty owing to smoke inhalation.
Fire officer Shashikant Kale said, “The fire broke out at 1.40pm in the lobby of the first floor of Lake City Mall which is a four-storey building. The smoke from the fire spread through the entire mall rapidly. We had deployed 15 firefighting vehicles, including five fire engines, two jumbo tankers, three water tankers, four rescue vans and one control van. Around 100 firefighters tried to douse the fire with eight fire lines. Around 350 people present in the mall were rescued to safety.”
It took three hours to completely douse the fire, during which time officials had to break the mall’s glass façade to release the smoke. “The fire in the lobby was doused in 15 minutes. However, a series of small fires kept breaking out due to interlinked cables. This delayed the dousing and cooling operations,” said Santosh Kadam, chief of Regional Disaster Management Cell. Forty-nine year old Namdev Zore, who was in an office at the far end of the fourth floor, was rescued by fire officials after approximately two hours in the mall. He was admitted to a private hospital as was lead firefighter RK Shelar, 55. Both of them complained of breathing difficulty owing to smoke inhalation.
Officials suspect the fire broke out due to a short circuit in the mall’s electrical system and considering the extensive damage, Lake City Mall may be closed for the next few days.