Fire in Mumbai court; 5th incident in 20 days

MUMBAI: A fire broke out on the third floor of the sessions court building in south Mumbai, near the University of Mumbai, on Monday morning, an official said. No injuries have been reported.

The fire began around 7 am and was doused by 9.25 am. Six fire engines, five water tankers and an ambulance were rushed to the spot.

The court premises were empty as it was early morning, which prevented casualties.

“The fire started from a courtroom on the third floor and spread rapidly, gutting the courtroom entirely,” an official from the fire brigade said, on condition of anonymity. The wooden benches, chairs and railings proved a challenge as fire officials fought to contain the blaze from spreading to other courtrooms and damaging documents, he added.

Fire officials said the cause of the fire appears to be welding work going on in the court premises.

The fire official said: “Our prime concern was to stop the fire from spreading as the courtrooms have a lot of wooden furniture and many bundles of documents. Now, we will assess if any documents have been gutted.”

This is the fifth fire incident in the city in the past 20 days.

Twelve workers were killed when a fire broke out in a farsan shop in Saki Naka while they were fast asleep, on December 18.

On December 29, 14 people were killed after a fire broke out in an upscale pub in Kamala Mills compound and spread.