Mumbai Fire: Seven others who died; Some jumped, others could not move and suffocated

Sabera called her brother Shamshuddin who reached the hospital and then rushed to the fourth floor. Khan’s body, along with the bed he was on, was brought out with a doctor’s help. “The hospital has a poor fire alarm system. There was no siren. The glass covering the fire fighting equipment was so hard that staffers couldn’t break it,” said one of Khan’s relatives, Tasleem Arif.

The fourth floor of the hospital building has male and female medicine units. Seven of the eight bodies were retrieved from the two wards.

Another asthma patient, Manisha Kangutkar (63), a Kurla resident, was on oxygen support. Her son Anand said she was in the fourth floor at ward 14, along with her daughter Leena and granddaughter, when the fire broke out. “A fireman picked up my mother and came down till the third floor. But they both slipped and fell. Then others dragged them down,” said Anand who works at a printing press.

Port-mortem details show Manisha suffered a head injury during rescue operation and fractured limbs, which combined with suffocation led to her death.

According to forensic expert Dr Sachin Sonawane, asthma patients are most vulnerable in these situations. “Their lung is already not functioning properly. Because carbon dioxide fumes cut oxygen supply, these patients suffer from toxicity faster,” he said.

Watchman Asaram Magre (68) was admitted to ward 10, in the third floor, with a fractured leg on December 1. “He could not walk. He had undergone a surgery a few days ago,” said his son Anand. Magre was alone when the fire broke out. His family suspects that he remained on the cot, helpless and unable to move. “When we found him an hour later, we put him in an autorickshaw and rushed to Seven Hills hospital. But he had died by then,” said Anand, who is from Powai.

Chandrakant Damodar Mhatre (69) jumped from the fourth floor to save himself. He was admitted on December 4 for dialysis. His son Mahesh said Chandrakant was with his second son Hemant. Both jumped from the fourth floor window during the fire and sustained multiple fractures. Chandrakant, an Uran resident, lost a lot of blood, doctors at Seven Hills Hospital said.

He was under treatment at the intensive care unit and succumbed to the injuries — multiple fractures in the ribs and limbs, blood loss and suffocation. Hemant is still at Seven Hills Hospital with multiple injuries and breathing problem. “We have no idea how they escaped. We came when someone called us from their phones,” Mahesh said.

Agireddy Mattu (78) was at the fourth floor of the ESIC Hospital on Monday. He had asthma and required an MRI. His brother, who was with him, had just stepped into the administration office when the fire broke out. He rushed out but Mattu remained trapped in the fourth floor. “We kept waiting outside. Later, we rushed to all six hospitals to look for him. We found him at Cooper Hospital,” said Mattu’s son Nagesh, a Kurla resident.

Arti Patorkar (48) was at the female medicine ward and she jumped out of a window. She died of multiple injuries and suffocation. “She had bilateral rib fractures and injuries to the head. Asphyxiation was also one of the causes,” a forensic expert said.

Tirthraj Gupta (74) died of suffocation. He was also on the fourth floor ward and was found unconscious in his cot.