A fire broke out on the ground-floor of a two-storey derelict BMC school building near the Mint Colony Monorail Station in Parel on Monday morning. The flames also led to the explosion of gas and oxygen cylinders. No injuries were reported as the institute has been shut for the last three years. However, the Covid-related materials stored in the building were reduced to ashes.
The blaze erupted at the Saibaba Path Municipal School in Parel at around 9:15 am. Since it was also operated as a Covid care and vaccination centre, articles like oxygen cylinders were stored on the ground floor. “There were five big and two small oxygen and LPG cylinders stored in the hall. The fire spread due to the explosion of these cylinders. It was extinguished by 12:05 pm,” said a senior fire official.
Vijay Gohil
The flames were confined to electric installations, foam mattress, ceiling fans, wooden and metal furniture, scrap, PPE kits, etc. The cause of the fire is under investigation, but prima facie it appears that the mishap was a result of a short circuit.
Local ex-corporator Anil Kokil asked, “When the school was declared as dilapidated, why was it not demolished and continued to be used as a storeroom? Who would have been responsible if the explosion had been bigger and the fire would have spread to the nearby slums.” He demanded to demolish the building at the earliest.
