The fire that broke out in a building near Gulzar House, close to Hyderabad’s Charminar, was caused by a short circuit, according to the preliminary investigation conducted by the fire department. On Sunday morning, a fire broke out in the Krishna Pearls store and a residential building in the Gulzar House area. A total of 11 fire engines were dispatched to the scene to control the blaze. According to a statement by Y. Nagi Reddy, Director General of Telangana Disaster Response and Fire Services, the initial investigation revealed that a short circuit was the cause of the fire.
News agency ANI quoted Reddy as saying, “Preliminary investigation indicates that the fire was caused by a short circuit. The cause of death for all 17 victims was inhalation of smoke—no one suffered burn injuries.” Reddy further revealed that the fire department received the call at 6:16 a.m., and within a minute, 11 fire engines with necessary personnel were dispatched. Firefighters had to use oxygen masks and breathing apparatus to rescue people trapped inside the building.
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The fire official stated, “There was no shortcoming from the fire department in extinguishing the fire and rescuing people... The building had only a narrow, tunnel-like entrance of about two meters. There was only a one-meter-wide staircase leading to the first and second floors, which made the rescue operation very difficult. The fire was brought under control by 9 a.m... There were a total of 21 people inside the building... The cause of death is smoke inhalation; no one suffered burns.”
The list of 17 deceased released by the Telangana Fire Disaster Response Emergency and Civil Defense includes the names of eight children under the age of 10. The youngest victim was identified as one-and-a-half-year-old Prathan. The other children were identified as 7-year-old Hami, 4-year-old Priyansh, 2-year-old Iraj, 3-year-old Aarushi, 4-year-old Rishabh, 3-year-old Anuyan, and 4-year-old Iddoo.