NEW DELHI: A 17-year-old girl was killed and more than 100 shanties were gutted after a massive fire broke out in Delhi's Rithala area in the early hours of Thursday.
The blaze left dozens of migrant families homeless as it ripped through the densely packed cluster.
The Delhi Fire Services (DFS) received a call regarding the fire at 4.15 am. More than 18 fire tenders were sent to the spot to combat the flames, which had spread rapidly across the settlement.
Firefighters recovered the charred body of the teenager, identified as Rozina Khatun, from the debris after the blaze was brought under control.
Her body was sent to the BSA Hospital and later shifted to the mortuary for a post-mortem examination.
Officials said the fire intensified quickly due to the close proximity of the huts and the presence of highly inflammable materials like plastic sheets, wooden planks and cloth.
The fire also spread to an adjacent godown containing paper rolls and cardboard, while the doors and windows of nearby houses also damaged.
The shanty cluster, known as Bengali Basti, housed migrant labourers from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal who worked as daily wage earners at local factories, and construction sites.
"Out teams reached the location soon after the call and began operations.
The fire had already engulfed several shanties," a fire official said.
The blaze was brought under control by around 6.30 am.
Residents said they lost all their belongings, including clothes, savings and identity documents.
"We ran out to save our lives when the fire started.Within minutes everything started to burn. Our hut, clothes, money and documents, everything is gone," said Ramesh Kumar, a labourer from Bihar.
A woman labourer from West Bengal, said the fire destroyed everything within minutes, leaving the families with nothing but the clothes they were wearing.
"We woke up to screams and saw fire everywhere. We somehow managed to take the children outside. We could not save anything," she said.
Some of the residents were seen searching the debris, hoping to find salvageable items.
"We worked for years to build this small hut and collected household items. In just a few minutes, everything we had earned was destroyed," said a worker from Uttar Pradesh.
Police personnel from the Budh Vihar station cordoned off the area and assisted in the evacuation of the residents to prevent further casualties.
Around 10 ambulances were also deployed to the site.
A case has been registered under sections 287 (negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter), 125(a) (act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 106 (causing death by negligence) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
"While the fire is now under control, cooling operations are still ongoing.
The cause of the fire is yet to be determined," a senior police officer said.