Shimla: An eight-year-old child was among the three individuals killed in a massive fire that engulfed a four-storey building primarily occupied by migrant families from Bihar and Nepal, officials said.
The fire broke out near UCO Bank in the Arki market of the Solan district, and six people are still feared to be trapped under the debris, police said Monday.
Arki MLA Sanjay Awasthi, who was at the spot, said that 10 to 15 houses suffered significant damage in the fire. Additionally, he informed that some locals from Nepal are missing and a search is underway to locate them.
The building, made of mud and wood and owned by Rajiv Gupta, was completely gutted in the fire. The ground and first floors housed shops, while families lived on the third and fourth floors.
Visuals showing fire tenders battling the enormous blaze in the cold night, along with residents of nearby buildings crying out for help to save their homes, have gone viral on the internet, clearly showcasing the panic among the community.
All three deceased individuals and the six people trapped are Nepalese nationals from Salyan in the Karnali province of Nepal. Among these nine individuals, five are minors.
The child was rescued in an injured condition, but later succumbed to injuries in the hospital. The bodies of two others were recovered during the rescue operation, found charred and fragmented, and post-mortem and forensic examinations are currently underway, police added.
So far, three bodies have been recovered from the site, and a case of negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter under Section 287 of BNS has been registered, according to Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh.
An inquiry has been ordered into the cause of the fire, which ignited around 2.45 am, Deputy Commissioner of Solan, Manmohan Sharma said, adding that the blaze originated from a wooden building and spread rapidly to adjacent structures.
The cause of the fire is still to be determined, pending reports from the forensic team and the fire department, police said.
Eyewitnesses reported hearing six to seven loud, deafening sounds, which they reckoned to be cylinder blasts, adding that these explosions may have intensified the flames.
Six fire tenders from Solan, Nalagarh, Banlag, Arki, Boulieganj (Shimla) and Ambuja plant were pressed into service to douse the flames and teams of the district administration, police, state disaster response force, home guard, and fire department are undertaking the search and rescue operations, while the National Disaster Response Force will join the rescue operation Tuesday.
The fire has now been brought under control, but rescue and search operations are ongoing at a rapid pace. Debris is being removed with the assistance of two JCB machines to aid in systematic searching, police said.
A total of nine families lived in the affected building and have been left without shelter. The administration has provided them with tarpaulins, blankets, clothing, and other necessary supplies.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has expressed sorrow over the incident and has instructed the deputy commissioner to initiate immediate relief and rescue efforts.
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