A major fire blazed through a three-storey commercial building in a posh Lucknow neighbourhood on a busy Monday afternoon, leaving at least 15 people, including students, dead and seven injured, officials said.
Most of the victims were trapped on the second floor of the building, located on Usha Mehta Marg in Aliganj in north Lucknow, where students were attending classes at an animation centre. The source of the fire is yet to be ascertained.
Eyewitnesses said several people jumped out of the building, which was completely gutted in the fire. The structure also housed a pet clinic. Fourteen fire tenders, including a hydraulic platform vehicle, were deployed to control the blaze reported at around 3 pm.
"A total of 22 people were brought to the Trauma Centre of King George's Medical University (KGMU) following the incident. Of them, 15 were declared brought dead, while five injured persons were admitted for treatment and their condition was stable," King George Medical University (KGMU) PRO Prof K K Singh told PTI.
Two others suffered minor injuries and were provided medical care, he said, adding that doctors and medical staff were continuously monitoring the injured.
"Due to two children jumping, they suffered back injuries, so they are also being treated after CT scans and other procedures," said Dr Anil Agrawal, Medical Superintendent at the trauma centre.
PTI witnessed people being taken out during the rescue operation, with some bodies being carried in body bags and others wrapped in blankets. The victims were brought out from the terrace of an adjoining building, where rescue teams had drilled two large openings into the affected building to gain access while the fire was still raging.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath cut short his visit to Aligarh and reached the site to review the situation.
Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, who had reached the spot as the rescue operation was underway, said that the children had come during summer holidays to learn animation at the centre.
"The fire broke out suddenly. It was an animation centre. While there is no immediate clarity about the sequence of events, it seems that the children ran towards the back side when the fire broke out… but they couldn’t survive. While there is no clarity about the exact figure, but I saw 11-12 bodies with my own eyes," Pathak told reporters earlier.
Later, with tears welling his eyes, the Deputy chief minister said he had seen 14 bodies at the spot. "They were our children. It is a very tragic incident," he said.
Pathak said a high-level inquiry had been ordered into the incident to ascertain the cause of the fire and determine how it occurred. "Strict action will be taken so that such incidents do not happen in future," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President C P Radhakrishnan and Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi expressed anguish at the the loss of live. PM Modi announced an an ex-gratia of Rs. 2 lakh from PMNRF to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs. 50,000.
The Deputy CM said the fire had been brought under control but the building was still filled with smoke. Firefighters and National Disaster Response Force personnel were conducting a room-to-room search inside the premises.
Senior officials, including Principal Secretary (Home) Sanjay Prasad, Director General of Police Rajeev Krishna and Lucknow Police Commissioner Amrendra Sengar, also reached the spot to monitor the rescue operation. NDRF, SDRF and civil defence teams were part of the rescue operation.
Addressing his programme in Aligarh, Chief Minister Adityanath expressed condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the incident and said said he has directed the Director General of Police and the Additional Chief Secretary (Home) to reach the spot and submit a report.
"I myself am also leaving for there so that we can go into the details of the entire matter, punish those responsible and also express our condolences to the affected families," he said earlier.
This fire incident in Lucknow comes within weeks of a massive blaze in a south Delhi restaurant that killed over 20 people.
The building is located in the premium residential Aliganj neighbourhood dotted by commercial spaces including coaching centres, cafes, and walking distance to the Purania market.
Kiran Shukla, an animal rights activist, feared that animals in the pet clinic might have been caught in the blaze. At least three bodies of animals wrapped in a blanket were taken out of the building at around 4.40 pm, PTI witnessed.
A police official said the local police reached the spot immediately after receiving information and teams from nearby fire stations were rushed with water tenders and firefighting equipment. Later other agencies also joined the rescue operation.
Visuals from the scene showed firefighting teams wearing safety gear climbing the building using ladders from outside. Another team was seen attempting to enter from the adjoining building of similar height by creating an access point from the upper side, while other teams continued efforts to douse the flames.
A local told PTI Videos during the rescue operation, "When I arrived at the spot, I saw smoke billowing from the building. Some students had already been rescued, and 4-5 students managed to come out of the building."
"Our only hope is that everyone comes out safely. The firefighters took some time to reach the spot," he said.
Another local said, "The fire may have been triggered by a spark. Seven to eight students jumped from the building to save themselves."
Distraught men and women, apparently guardians and relatives of the victims, were seen standing near the site and urging authorities to allow them to enter the building when the firefighting and rescue operations were underway.
