New Delhi, In the aftermath of a devastating fire that killed nine people in east Delhi’s Vivek Vihar, locals have begun mobilising to address glaring safety lapses, deciding to hold meetings every 15 days to discuss fire preparedness and structural changes in residential buildings.
On May 3, a fire broke at a four-storey building in Vivek Vihar Phase-I, rapidly spreading from the rear portion and engulfing flats from the first to the fourth floors. Nine people from two families, including a toddler, died while several others were rescued.
Initial investigation suggested an air-conditioner blast on a lower floor triggered the blaze, which intensified due to strong winds.
The building’s design including a single central staircase, locked terrace access, and iron grills at the rear significantly hampered escape and rescue efforts.
Against this backdrop, residents in nearby blocks and localities have started discussions on improving safety mechanisms.
“We have decided that meetings will be conducted every after 15 days and will discuss several way out during any fire-related incidents,” a local resident Rakesh Singh told PTI.
He added that the meetings would also focus on the risks posed by electronic door locking systems, which can fail during emergencies.
“Residents will also discuss about electronic door locking systems as such doors do not open in emergency situations. We got to know that some of the family members were not able to come out of the building due to electronic locking system and they charred to death,” he said.
Another resident, Shiv Sharma, who owns two flats on the second floor of a building in B-Block located around 100 metres from the fire site, highlighted a long-standing but unwritten practice that may have contributed to the fatalities.
“It is an unsaid rule that those who stay in top flats can only use the rooftop and they even lock the rooftop. Such was the case in the fire incident, as due to lock, many people were unable to reach the rooftop and died there,” he said.
He stressed that keeping terrace access open for all during emergencies could save lives.
“Had it not been locked, more lives could have been saved. During the meetings, we will raise this issue and ensure that rooftops are not locked so that people can reach there in emergency conditions,” Sharma added.
Residents also pointed to structural barriers such as iron grills and haphazardly parked cars that restrict evacuation routes.
Another resident said one of the major reasons for the high number of deaths was that the building was completely grilled from the rear side, leaving no exit path.
“I will personally suggest in the meetings that a passage or a door after cutting the iron grills can be made so in emergency conditions people can take exit from the back and save their lives,” he said.
Firefighters who responded to the blaze had also flagged similar concerns, stating that they had to cut through iron grills to rescue trapped residents. The locked terrace door and power failure further complicated rescue operations, rendering lifts non-functional and electronic locks ineffective.
According to the Delhi Fire Services , nine charred bodies were recovered from different parts of the building, including near the staircase leading to the terrace. Eyewitnesses said some victims had tried to reach the roof but could not escape due to the locked access.
The tragedy comes amid a sharp rise in fire incidents in the national capital. Official data shows that fire-related calls surged by 73 per cent in April compared to March, with 2,663 calls recorded last month alone.
Between January and April this year, 32 people have died in fire-related incidents in Delhi. In May, the toll has already reached double digits, with the Vivek Vihar blaze accounting for nine deaths.
Officials attribute the spike in incidents to rising temperatures and an increase in garbage and dry waste fires. Despite the surge, fire personnel have managed to rescue hundreds of people through timely intervention.
For residents shaken by the Vivek Vihar tragedy, however, the focus is now on prevention.
With recurring meetings and proposed structural changes, locals hope to ensure that such a disaster is not repeated.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
