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‘No one could go in, no one could come out’: How victims of Vivek Vihar fire were trapped by cage-like grills

At the time of the incident, the residents were asleep when the fire broke out in a second-floor flat on the rear side of the building. Initial findings suggest that the fire may have been caused by a short circuit in the AC in that flat.

Written by: Vidheesha Kuntamalla, Alok Singh

5 min readUpdated: May 4, 2026 01:54 AM IST

The Fire Brigade had arrived, but the firemen found their task had been made difficult by the additions that had been made to the building over the years. (Express Photo)

In the lanes of Vivek Vihar in East Delhi, where buildings are packed tightly enough to share both light and shadows, the early hours of Sunday were broken by screams. From the first-floor balcony of the home where he has lived since 1984, Gurdeep Singh Gill watched the fire begin around 3.30 am. It was a flicker on the second floor of a neighbouring building which, within minutes, turned into something else entirely.

“There was no space for people to get out,” Gill said hours later, standing outside the four-storey, nine-year-old building where the tragedy had struck.

At the time of the incident, the residents were asleep when the fire broke out in a second-floor flat on the rear side of the building. Initial findings suggest that the fire may have been caused by a short circuit in the AC in that flat.

When the fire brought flames, smoke and panic, the incremental additions to the structure, to grab space to dry clothes or keep potted plants, became life-and-death barriers.

From Gill’s balcony, he watched the second floor disappear behind smoke. Within half an hour, he said, the fire had cut off the only escape route for those on the higher floors – the stairs that lead up to the terrace.

The neighbourhood was ringing with voices — the screams of terrified children, wails of traumatised victims, shouted instructions from those who had gathered. Gill said he ran to fetch a pipe and aimed a jet of water upwards from his balcony at the flames.

But the heat pushed him back. “It was so hot,” he said.

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Inside the burning building, the panic was rising quickly. Two teenage girls were trapped on the second floor. Gill said he joined others below to drag mattresses into position, laying them out in the hope of cushioning the fall, should they choose to jump. Rescuers worked to cut through the grills so that people could slip through.

“We managed to cut a part of the metal to make space for people to come out. Three people could be taken out through the opening; two others jumped,” Gill said.

The family of Arvind Jain lived on the second floor. His wife and daughter were caught inside. The wife would not come out; she seemed either too terrified or was incapable, Gill said.

By then, the smoke was so thick that nothing could be seen. The building had effectively vanished behind a dark, acrid, choking, swirling screen. “No one on the third floor was visible,” Gill said.

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The Fire Brigade had arrived, but the firemen found their task had been made difficult by the additions that had been made to the building over the years.

“The residents were stuck in the back of the building,” Gill said. Firemen had access from the front, but the rear, where the fire was raging, had been blocked by the very features that residents had added over time. “If they weren’t there, maybe some lives could have been saved,” Gill said.

Manik Malhotra, an IT professional who lives in the neighbourhood, said he reached the building around 4 am. By then the fire, which had begun on the second floor, had engulfed the third floor and was licking at the fourth. The first floor, Malhotra said, was largely intact.

It was evident that the dense layers of grills and plastic netting at the back of the building were making the crisis worse.

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“There was a 4-inch gap,” Malhotra said. “Even getting a pipe through was difficult.”

At one point, three people — including two elderly women — managed to edge out onto a narrow ledge behind the netting, gasping for air as smoke filled their home, witnesses said.

From a neighbouring house, residents brought an angle grinder, a handheld machine meant for cutting metal. The power supply had been cut, so someone started a generator, witnesses said. Firefighters took the tool and began slicing through the grill.

“That helped, the firefighters cut through it completely,” Malhotra said.

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Through the opening, three people were pulled out using ladders. But the higher floors remained sealed behind thicker, denser layers of netting. Ladders had to be carried in by hand; hoses repositioned repeatedly. The rear lane was too narrow for the fire trucks to enter.

“If it wasn’t for this net, the casualties would have been reduced,” Malhotra said. In his assessment, “All of them on the third and fourth floors could have been saved.”

Once the fire was put out, residents of the neighbourhood stood around the blackened building with its hollowed out windows. They spoke about what happened, why, and what could have been.

“People need space,” Gill said.

“They cover everything,” Malhotra added. With flames on the one side and sealed exits on the other, “no one could get out, and no one could go in”, Malhotra said.

Vidheesha Kuntamalla

Vidheesha Kuntamalla is a Senior Correspondent at The Indian Express, based in New Delhi. She is known for her investigative reporting on higher education policy, international student immigration, and academic freedom on university campuses. Her work consistently connects policy decisions with lived realities, foregrounding how administrative actions, political pressure, and global shifts affect students, faculty, and institutions. Professional Profile Core Beat: Vidheesha covers education in Delhi and nationally, reporting on major public institutions including the University of Delhi (DU), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Jamia Millia Islamia, the IITs, and the IIMs. She also reports extensively on private and government schools in the National Capital Region. Prior to joining The Indian Express, she worked as a freelance journalist in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for over a year, covering politics, rural issues, women-centric issues, and social justice. Specialisation: She has developed a strong niche in reporting on the Indian student diaspora, particularly the challenges faced by Indian students and H-1B holders in the United States. Her work examines how geopolitical shifts, immigration policy changes, and campus politics impact global education mobility. She has also reported widely on: * Mental health crises and student suicides at IITs * Policy responses to campus mental health * Academic freedom and institutional clampdowns at JNU, South Asian University (SAU), and Delhi University * Curriculum and syllabus changes under the National Education Policy Her recent reporting has included deeply reported human stories on policy changes during the Trump administration and their consequences for Indian students and researchers in the US. Reporting Style Vidheesha is recognised for a human-centric approach to policy reporting, combining investigative depth with intimate storytelling. Her work often highlights the anxieties of students and faculty navigating bureaucratic uncertainty, legal precarity, and institutional pressure. She regularly works with court records, internal documents, official data, and disciplinary frameworks to expose structural challenges to academic freedom. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2024 & 2025) 1. Express Investigation Series JNU’s fault lines move from campus to court: University fights students and faculty (November 2025) An Indian Express investigation found that since 2011, JNU has appeared in over 600 cases before the Delhi High Court, filed by the administration, faculty, staff, students, and contractual workers across the tenures of three Vice-Chancellors. JNU’s legal wars with students and faculty pile up under 3 V-Cs | Rs 30-lakh fines chill campus dissent (November 2025) The report traced how steep monetary penalties — now codified in the Chief Proctor’s Office Manual — are reshaping dissent and disciplinary action on campus. 2. International Education & Immigration ‘Free for a day. Then came ICE’: Acquitted after 43 years, Indian-origin man faces deportation — to a country he has never known (October 2025) H-1B $100,000 entry fee explained: Who pays, who’s exempt, and what’s still unclear? (September 2025) Khammam to Dallas, Jhansi to Seattle — audacious journeys in pursuit of the American dream after H-1B visa fee hike (September 2025) What a proposed 15% cap on foreign admissions in the US could mean for Indian students (October 2025) Anxiety on campus after Trump says visas of pro-Palestinian protesters will be cancelled (January 2025) ‘I couldn’t believe it’: F-1 status of some Indian students restored after US reverses abrupt visa terminations (April 2025) 3. Academic Freedom & Policy Exclusive: South Asian University fires professor for ‘inciting students’ during stipend protests (September 2025) Exclusive: Ministry seeks explanation from JNU V-C for skipping Centre’s meet, views absence ‘seriously’ (July 2025) SAU rows after Noam Chomsky mentions PM Modi, Lankan scholar resigns, PhD student exits SAU A series of five stories examining shrinking academic freedom at South Asian University after global scholar Noam Chomsky referenced Prime Minister Narendra Modi during an academic interaction, triggering administrative unease and renewed debate over political speech, surveillance, and institutional autonomy on Indian campuses. 4. Mental Health on Campuses In post-pandemic years, counselling rooms at IITs are busier than ever; IIT-wise data shows why (August 2025) Campus suicides: IIT-Delhi panel flags toxic competition, caste bias, burnout (April 2025) 5. Delhi Schools These Delhi government school grads are now success stories. Here’s what worked — and what didn’t (February 2025) ‘Ma’am… may I share something?’ Growing up online and alone, why Delhi’s teens are reaching out (December 2025) ... Read More

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