Indore (Madhya Pradesh): A massive fire broke out in a sixth-floor flat at Balaji Heights in Mahalaxmi Nagar on Sunday afternoon, triggering widespread panic. The blaze erupted in Flat No 611, located in C-Block. Upon seeing thick plumes of smoke billowing from the windows, terrified neighbours rushed out of the building to safety.
Fortunately, teams from the Fire Brigade arrived promptly at the scene and extinguished the flames. No casualties or injuries were reported. According to Fire Brigade officials, they received an alert at 4:37 PM regarding the blaze in the flat owned by Kuldeep Patidar.
Fire Brigade ASI Malviya said, "Upon arrival, we found the sixth-floor flat engulfed in flames. Our team laid out four pipelines through the staircase to reach the unit. It took nearly 10,000 litres of water to douse the fire completely". While the building structural integrity remained intact, the contents of one room, including a sofa, bed and other household items, were completely gutted.
The flat owner, Kuldeep Patidar, a banker, is currently on the Char Dham Yatra with his family and has been away for a week. A preliminary investigation suggests the fire was caused by a short circuit linked to an electric fan left running.
Patidar said that a domestic help visits the flat every few days to water the plants. It is suspected that during her last visit, she accidentally left an electrical appliance, such as a ceiling fan or light, switched on. As the flat is a corner unit on the top floor, it was subjected to extreme heat over several days. The fan, running continuously, likely overheated and sparked on the electrical board. Since a sofa was positioned directly beneath the board, it ignited immediately, allowing the blaze to spread rapidly throughout the room.
Earlier, on April 13, a massive fire erupted on the sixth floor of an Indore Development Authority (IDA) residential building located in the Harsinghar Complex near Niranjanpur in Scheme Number 136. While the blaze caused significant property damage, reaching as high as the seventh floor, no casualties were reported thanks to a timely evacuation. The flat owner and his wife were asleep in one room while the blaze erupted in another. The fire is believed to have been triggered by a short circuit after an electric massager was reportedly left running overnight.
