Ashok Sampath (45) rushed to Crystal Tower after receiving a call from his daughter about the fire on the 12th floor of the building. His 18-year-old daughter Nidhi and other family members were stuck on the 16th floor of the building and could not come down as the stairway was filled with smoke. “Nidhi asked Sampath to call the fire brigade,” said Sampath’s brother-in-law Mustafa Arsiwala. Sampath’s charred body was taken out by fire officials from the lift. Arsiwala said Nidhi was a frequent visitor at Crystal Tower, where her grandparents lived. “As soon as he was informed, he went to Crystal Tower and took the lift. However, he could not reach her,” said Arsiwala. The real-estate agent’s body was identified by a visiting card found with him. Another victim, Hasan Shaikh, was celebrating Eid in a 13th floor flat with his two cousins. While his cousins — Azharuddin Shaikh and Zahangir Shaikh — were rescued by firefighters, Hasan’s body was found in the staircase of the building. A family friend, Zoel Qureshi, said: “I met Azhar and Zahangir in the hospital. At 7 am, they went to the mosque for prayers and not long after they went home. They were stuck in the fire.” The two cousins told their families that they panicked when the fire broke out. “They initially rushed to the staircase and as there was too much smoke, they could not see anything. Azhar and Zahangir came back inside, but they lost Hasan in the smoke,” said Qureshi. The two stayed in the balcony for a while, from where they were rescued by fire fighters. Hasan is survived by his wife and two sons. Having come to Mumbai around 10 years ago, he was helping in his family’s jewellery business. Along with Zahangir, he would usually stay in Kalbadevi at the store. On Wednesday, however, they had come to Azhar’s house for Eid. Among the deceased was senior citizen Shubhada Shirke, a former employee of the State Bank of India, who lived alone. A family friend, requesting anonymity, said: “Shirke called up her daughter and informed them about the fire. The daughter, who lives in Prabhadevi, arrived at the spot, along with her husband, but they could not get inside.”
