New Delhi: In what could be termed as a strange tragic coincidence, three fires have been reported on three consecutive days in the national capital. The three places which caught fire in Naraina, Paschim Puri and Karol Bagh geographically far from each other and with no direct or indirect relation have burnt to ashes on February 14, 13 and 12 respectively.
On Thursday at around 7:15 am, a fire broke out at Archies greeting card factory in the Naraina Industrial area in west Delhi.
According to the fire department, the blaze spread rapidly to the top floors. "Some 30 fire engines were present at the spot. There is no news of any casualty," said Atul Garg, Chief Fire Officer.
According to the factory manager, Amarjeet Singh, the telephone switchboard caught fire and the flames spread to other parts of the multi-storey building. The flames were so intense that they travelled several feet in the air before the fire officials managed to douse them. This fire incident comes a day after a massive fire broke out in Delhi's Paschim Puri area in the wee hours of Wednesday. Around 250 shanties were gutted in the blaze. A woman was seriously injured in the Paschim Puri fire and admitted to a nearby hospital.
At least 28 fire tenders were immediately rushed to the spot. The fire department was alerted around 1:15 am. The cause of the fire was suspected to have been a short circuit.
Later, police recovered several small gas cylinders from the spot which had caught fire. Paschim Puri is a locality in Paschim Vihar area, which comes under Punjabi Bagh subzone of West Delhi. This comes just a day after another massive fire in Delhi on February 12. The fire at Hotel Arpit Palace in Karol Bagh area which killed as many as 17 people early on Tuesday morning.
According to the Delhi Fire Department, 35 people were rescued from Hotel Arpit Palace. At least 11 people suffered injuries and were sent to the hospital. There was commercial fitting in stairs of the hotel and corridors which were the possible reason the fibre sheet and wooden flooring caught fire.
Due to fire, exits were blocked too. Windows were not opening. There was a push button but no one could find it because of the black smoke. The reason for most deaths was also smoke. The general manager and another employee of the hotel have also been arrested by the Delhi Police, the case has now been transferred to the crime branch.