9 Dead in Delhi Building Fire

New Delhi. At least 9 people have died in a fierce fire in a four-story residential building in Vivek Vihar, the capital of India, New Delhi, on Sunday morning. 

The fire, which started from the second floor of the building around 4 am in this area, considered the main location of East Delhi, spread rapidly to the third and fourth floors. 

As soon as the fire was reported, 14 fire engines reached the spot and brought the fire under control around 6 am after about two hours of effort. Although security personnel and rescue teams rescued more than a dozen people alive from the building, they could not save 9 people. 

Two people injured in the fire have been admitted to Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital for treatment. According to eyewitnesses, although many people were rescued from the balcony of the building, it is suspected that some families in the back part may still be trapped inside the building. 

Shahdara DCP Rajendra Prasad Meena informed that all the bodies have been removed from the spot and handed over to the Delhi Police's crime team. Even after extinguishing the fire, search and rescue operations are still ongoing inside the building. 

Although the exact cause of the fire is not yet known, local residents have claimed that the fire spread due to an air conditioner (AC) explosion. According to a local, the building caught fire after the AC exploded with a loud noise. 

The police, however, said that a detailed investigation into the incident is underway and the actual cause of the fire will be known only after the report of the technical team. It is estimated that the human loss was high because the fire broke out suddenly while everyone was sleeping in the morning.