Bandra mall fire: Flames doused after 22 hrs; MFB says difficulty to reach basement, delayed call led to spread

The MFB has launched its investigation to ascertain the cause of the fire with senior officials stating that crammed passageway leading into the basement as well as delayed call about the fire led to the spread of the blaze, and slowed down the operations.

Early Tuesday, a fire broke out inside the basement of the three-story Link Square Mall, which houses over 200 shops, that later engulfed the entire building.

The MFB received the first call of fire at 3.58 am, while the first team of firefighters reached the spot at 4.17 am.

According to preliminary BMC findings, rooms across the building’s three floors did not have any ventilation, owing to which the fire and smoke spread rapidly.

In a bid to extinguish the flames, the MFB pressed 53 fire fighting machines including 19 fire engines, 14 jumbo tankers, two turn table ladders as well as 76 officers and 273 personnel on the site.

Besides this, a team of NDRF comprising 30 personnel were also roped in at the behest of the MFB. After nearly 22 hours, the BMC said that the fire was doused at 1.41 am.

Mumbai’s Chief Fire Officer (CFO) Ravindra Ambulgekar told The Indian Express that the MFB has launched its investigation to ascertain the cause of the fire.

“The fire started in the basement. However, we found that the passageway leading to the basement was filled with storage items including items like thermocol which is extremely combustible. There was also a delay in calling the fire brigade, owing to which the fire had spread all over and there was intensive heating. The blocked pathway, intensive heating and smoke made it extremely difficult to reach the basement,” said Ambulgekar.

According to the civic authorities, the MFB used fire robots to access the basement.

While the officials have confirmed that the internal fighting system was inoperative during the fire fighting, the civic body is yet to issue notices to the establishment.

Meanwhile, tenants and shop owners remained pensive as they awaited details and attempted to ascertain the extent of their losses on Wednesday.

According to officials from the ward office, the tenants were prevented from entering the building owing to the heating and smoke within the structure.

Virendra Pise, who ran two shops at Link Square Mall said that he had only recently stocked his shops with high-end imported products from China. “Expecting an influx of customers in the summer vacations, I had recently concluded a trip in China from wherein we had stocked our shops with high-end ladies accessories like purses, glasses etc. We are still waiting to enter the shops and figure the actual extent of damage.”

Another tenant Tausif Shaikh said, “The MFB officials told us that nearly 100 per cent of the mall has been charred in the blaze. Even the heavy shutters and the locks have been burnt owing to high levels of heat. But we are yet to go inside and see. Not only the stock but many people ranging from watchmen to the housekeeping staff have also lost their jobs.”

Shoaib Mansoori, who has been running a shoe shop in the mall, said, “We pay a maintenance of around 45,000 besides heavy rent and yet, when the fire broke out, the alarms failed to go off. Despite abiding by the rules, we have now incurred massive losses and lost our means of living.”