Daijiworld Media Network – Mumbai

Mumbai, Feb 17: A devastating fire at a nine-storey building in Masjid Bunder’s Pann Ali Mansion early Sunday morning claimed the lives of two women and left five others injured.

The blaze erupted at 6:11 am in the meter room on the ground floor, suspected to have been triggered by a short circuit. The heavy smoke engulfed the staircase and lift shafts, leading to chaos as residents scrambled for safety.

Suffocated by the dense smoke, Sabiya Alam Shaikh (30) and Sabila Khatun Shaikh (42) lost consciousness while attempting to escape via the stairs and were later declared dead at the hospital.

Five others—Shah Jiya Shaikh (21), Shahin Alam Shaikh (22), Nakis Surti (24), and Sauda Alam Shaikh (48)—were rushed to JJ Hospital, while Karim Shaikh (20) is recovering at GT Hospital. Three victims remain hospitalized, while two have been discharged.

Deputy chief fire officer Santosh Sawant stated that though the fire itself was not extensive, the thick smoke proved fatal. The fire spread through the meter room, affecting commercial storage units on the lower floors and residential flats above.

The fire brigade extinguished the blaze by 6:31 am, but residents, now left without electricity, remain shaken. A fire official noted that the structure, built using an I-beam, posed a severe fire hazard, especially in the congested B Ward known for its closely packed buildings.