Mumbai: Fire department files police case against Mahalaxmi building

Mahalaxmi building

Furious with the residents of Samrat Ashoka building in Mahalaxmi where a fire killed a 70-year-old woman early Sunday, the fire department has filed a police complaint in the matter. The fire department had issued a notice to the building authorities on October 22 asking them to comply with fire safety norms. According to them, the casualty and injuries in the Sunday fire could have been avoided had the fire safety norms been complied with.

As per the notice, the department had found eight violations following their inspection. The fire ducts of all 18 floors were blocked with household articles; the sprinkler system was not working; the fire pump, sprinkler pump, manual fire system and booster were not functioning and even the fire extinguishers and sand buckets were not kept at the right places. The fire department had given them two months' time to comply with the fire safety standards.

Speaking to mid-day, P S Rahangdale, chief fire officer, said, "When our officer visited the spot on Sunday, he found that none of the changes mentioned by us had been incorporated. They should have made at least some changes within this period. Hence, we filed a police complaint in the matter."

Requesting anonymity, a fire officer said, "After issuing a notice, we give the authorities concerned a certain time period in which to comply with the orders as per the rules mentioned under the Maharashtra Fire Prevention and Life Safety Measures Act. Following this, we again inspected the building to ensure that it is safe. Failure to follow the fire safety standards can lead to three months imprisonment and a fine of Rs 50,000."

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