Andheri fire: 75-year-old suffocates to death

The flat in the B wing of Sky Pan building in Andheri where the fire broke out. Pic/Satej Shinde

A senior citizen lost his life due to a fire that broke out on the 11th floor of a 13-storey building in Andheri West on Monday night. The fire erupted around 10 pm in the ‘B' wing of Sky Pan building in Oberoi Complex and was extinguished at 1.49 am.

Rahul Mishra, 75, died due to smoke inhalation, while Raunak Mishra, 38, who was admitted to the Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, took discharge against medical advice. The fire destroyed the electrical wiring, electrical installations and household articles. A total of eight fire engines and two turntable ladders were used to put it out.

A fire brigade official who was present at the spot said, "We found that the internal firefighting system is working. But we did not use it." The fire brigade will be conducting an inspection of the internal fire safety systems of the entire building. Deputy Chief Fire Officer H V Girkar said, "We are investigating the cause of the fire. We will also thoroughly check the internal fire fighting system." Building chairman Kishnendu Ghosh did not respond to calls.

Evacuate senior citizens first

In the last six months, six senior citizens died in high-rise fire at various places in Mumbai. In July 2024, a 70-year-old died in a fire in a Borivli East high-rise. Chandraprakash and Kanti Soni, both 74 years old, died in an October 2024 fire in Riya Palace in Andheri West. Another woman, S M Anandi, 68, died in Mulund high-rise fire in September 2024.

Smoke detectors essential

Pratap Karguppikar, former chief fire officer, told mid-day, "Sprinklers only operate if the temperature reaches 70°C. State of the art smoke detector machines should be installed for this so that even unseen smoke is detected and an alert is issued to the residents."

According to Karguppikar, the readiness of firefighting systems in high-rise buildings should also be regularly checked, and each building should have a fire control room for first response. "Another issue is the amount of plastic bags and plastic utensils being stored at households. These plastic utensils and bags do not burn completely but create a huge amount of smoke.

This leads to the formation of carbon monoxide which is a very deadly gas. Senior citizens and children should immediately exit the house in case of a fire. To prevent carbon monoxide poisoning, people should try and store a minimum to no plastic bags and utensils," he added.