Nagpur: A fire broke out in a gym housed in a seven-storey building at Ramdaspeth on Monday, triggering panic and prompting a major firefighting operation during which a 59-year-old woman was rescued from the smoke-filled structure.The blaze erupted around 11am in an air-conditioning unit installed in a gym on the first floor of the building near Lendra Park in Kachipura. Preliminary investigations suggest a short circuit sparked the fire, which spread to portions of the second floor.As dense smoke engulfed the building, occupants scrambled to safety. Officials said sealed windows and balconies restricted ventilation, hampering firefighting efforts. After corporator Vinay Dani alerted the Nagpur Municipal Corporation control room, four fire tenders were rushed to the spot.A team led by fire officers Bhagwan Wagh, Sunil Dokre and Ravindra Marskolhe battled the blaze for nearly an hour before bringing it under control.During the operation, firefighters rescued Bharti Battu (59) from Room No. 305 on the third floor. No injuries were reported.The incident also exposed serious lapses in fire safety preparedness. Chief Fire Officer Tushar Barahate said the building had the mandatory firefighting installations, but they were non-functional during the emergency. “Had the system been properly maintained, the fire could have been contained much earlier,” he said.The fire damaged two outdoor AC units and part of the central air-conditioning ducting system. Fire officials said a detailed inspection would be carried out and notices issued to the management over the failure to maintain the firefighting equipment.Officials said the G+7 building, owned by Sham Borle, has parking facilities and a hotel booking office on the ground floor. The first and second floors are leased to Rishabh Sharma for a gymnasium, while the upper floors house the lodging and boarding facilities of Hotel Down Town.
