Noida (UP), July 15: A fire broke out in a multi-storeyed building in a Noida village on Wednesday, killing two people, police said, suspecting it was triggered while an electric two-wheeler was being charged inside the premises.
The fire was later brought under control and around 50 tenants, residing in the building in Mamura village in Sector 66, were evacuated safely, officials said.
Police said two residents — a man and a woman — who were rushed to the hospital were declared dead by doctors. The woman has been identified as 22-year-old Sneha Srivastava.
Officials said she had suffered around 40 per cent burn injuries. The identity of the deceased man, aged around 30 years, was yet to be established. He had sustained nearly 80 per cent burn injuries, officials said.
According to Joint Commissioner of Police Rajiv Mishra, the ground-plus-four building had around 10 to 12 rooms on each floor that were being used as residential flats.
The landlord was arrested after an FIR was registered against him at Phase-3 police station under relevant provisions of law.
The fire appears to have been sparked by an electric two-wheeler being charged inside the building. It spread to nearby petrol-powered two-wheelers parked in the premises, Mishra said. Seven fire tenders and a hydraulic platform were rushed to the spot immediately after the blaze was reported and most residents were safely evacuated.
“Two persons, who already had health-related issues, fell ill after inhaling smoke and were shifted to the district hospital by ambulance,” Mishra told reporters.
Residents recounted scenes of panic as smoke rapidly engulfed the building following the blaze.
Arnab Singh, a 25-year-old resident living on the second floor, told PTI Videos that many initially did not take the incident seriously as they believed the fire, which started after a short circuit, was confined to an electric scooter and would die down on its own.
Another resident, Ravi Kumar Singh, said he was asleep in his room around 11.30 am when his roommate alerted him about the fire.
According to him, several residents escaped by climbing onto the roof and crossing over to a neighbouring building using a ladder, as thick smoke had filled the stairways inside the building.
After reaching safety, they saw that a massive fire had engulfed the parking area on the ground floor, he said.
Ravi Kumar Singh said part of the building was being used as paying guest accommodation, while the remaining portion comprised 2BHK flats rented out to families. The ground floor was being used as a parking area where residents parked their two-wheelers. (PTI)
