THANE: A fire broke out today in a five-storeyed residential building in powerloom town of Bhiwandi here and firemen had to battle for over four hours to bring it under control and evacuate all the 66 families trapped inside, civic officials said.
The blaze began after a powerloom unit on the ground floor of the building at Nagoan caught fire and spread to the first floor, where yarn and other raw materials were stored. Bhiwandi tehsildar Vaishali Lambhate said. Six fire tenders from Thane, Kalyan, Ulhasnagar and Bhiwandi were pressed into service and rescue operations began at around 7.30 AM. The trapped families were directed to move to the building terrace from where they were rescued, the Tehsildar said, adding there were no casualties.
Members of the National Disaster Management Authority also aided local fire officials and police in the rescue operations which was personally monitored by Bhiwandi civic chief Balaji Khatgonkar and senior officials of the revenue department.
Attributing the cause of the fire to a "short circuit", a senior official said a criminal case will be soon filed in this regard.
Lambhate said the building had a non-agriculture permit and other factors like building permission as well as safety measures are being examined by the civic corporation and police.