Fire breaks out in a building housing a coaching institute in Hyderabad; 50 students rescued
Hyderabad: Nearly 50 students from a coaching institute were rescued after a fire broke out in a commercial complex in Hyderabad’s Ameerpet area on Friday. Police said no one was injured.
Fire-fighting staff rescued approximately 50 students trapped in an IT coaching institute on the second floor.
The incident occurred in Maithrivana in the heart of the city.
Students from the coaching institute in the Nilgiri Block of the G5 commercial building were trapped in the fire, causing panic in the busy area.
Fire-fighting staff arrived at the scene with fire engines and launched an operation to extinguish the fire and rescue those trapped inside.
Some people climbed down from the balcony to escape, while rescuers rescued 50 students using stairs.
Following the incident, officials closed the shops in the complex and sent home students from other coaching institutes in the building.
Initial police investigations revealed that the fire was caused by an electrical short circuit from a panel board on the ground floor. When smoke spread to the first and second floors, people in the building panicked.
Students from a coaching class on the second floor were trapped by the smoke. People from other blocks of the building began rescue operations before police and firefighters arrived.
Police said no one was injured in the fire. A police officer said a case has been registered and further investigations are underway.
A.V. Ranganath, Commissioner of the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA), visited the blazed building. He told the media that a short circuit caused the fire.
The HYDRAA team also participated in the rescue operation.
He said that garbage on the balcony hindered rescue efforts. He said that fortunately, the fire did not spread. If it had spread, it could have caused a major disaster.
He explained that HYDRAA, Fire Services, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), and the Electricity Department recently launched a drive to check for fire safety violations.
Ranganath said they have given all buildings one month to implement the necessary fire safety measures. He added that they will begin conducting safety checks next month.
