Two children died and five people were injured when a massive fire gutted over 800 shanties in a jhuggi cluster at Sector 17 in Rohini on Sunday morning. According to Delhi Fire Service, the blaze was doused completely after fire-fighters worked tirelessly for three hours, but cooling operations are still underway.
Charred bodies of two children — a two-and-a-half year old and a three-year-old — were recovered from the remains, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Rohini) Amit Goel said. In a video posted on X, the visuals from the site showed billowing black clouds of smoke.
Taking a note, Union Health Minister and BJP President JP Nadda spoke to Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva and asked them to provide immediate assistance to the victim of the Rohini fire incident. He also asked the Delhi BJP President to involve Delhi Karyakartas to provide assistance.
The Delhi Fire Service (DFS) official said they received a distress call around 11.55 am.â€We received a call reporting a fire close to Sriniketan Apartment at Sector 17. We immediately dispatched 17 fire engines. Upon observing the intensity of the fire, we upgraded it to a medium category fire by 12.40 pm and called for more vehicles and manpower,†he said, adding that a total of 26 fire tenders were deployed at the spot.
Earlier, the firemen encountered difficulties in reaching the incident spot due to congestion on the road leading to the slum cluster.
The cluster has 800-1,000 jhuggis and almost 150 of them have been damaged,’ said a police official. A eyewitness said a dark smoke column rising from the jhuggi cluster was visible from almost a kilometre away. “It took more than three hours to douse the flames completely. The cooling operation is still underway. The bodies of two children were recovered and immediately sent to a nearby hospital,†the DFS official said.
“The fire is now completely under control. Cooling operations are in progress,†he said. Multiple police teams were also deployed at the spot along with the
fire brigade.
According to DFS, the fire started from one of the huts and immediately engulfed the entire area. The official explained that fire-fighters faced significant hurdles due to the location.
“There is an apartment complex with boundary walls in front of the affected area, making access extremely difficult. Fire engines had to be lined up one behind the other, delaying the operation,†he said.
Police will investigate the exact cause of fire, he said. Preliminary inputs suggest the fire could have been triggered within the cluster itself, he said, adding that there are no organised electrical wiring systems in the area but several LPG cylinders were found, which could have contributed to the spread of the fire. Search and cooling operations continue in the area.
In a separate incident, a massive fire erupted in the forest near the ITO
of the national capital under the Shakarpur police station area limits on Sunday afternoon.
According to officials of the Delhi Fire Service Department, no loss of life has been reported in the fire incident. Geeta Colony fire station sub-officer Bhimsen said that they received a call about trees on the loop leading from Laxmi Nagar to ITO catching fire at 12:07 pm.â€Three
vehicles are at the spot. The fire is under control. No casualties have been reported,†he added.
