On Wednesday morning, approximately 1,000 students from classes 6 to 10 at New Horizon Public School (NHPS) in Airoli, Navi Mumbai, were safely evacuated following a transformer malfunction. The incident, reported to the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) fire department at 9:50 a.m., caused smoke and a power outage throughout the building. Fire safety officer Upendra Bhoir stated that a short circuit led to a minor fire and sparking in the meter room where the transformer was housed. School staff attributed the short circuit to a crow coming into contact with the wires, causing them to touch. The fire was swiftly contained with a fire extinguisher. Videos of students assembled in the school’s playground soon surfaced online, showing the evacuation process.
A class 7 student recalled, "We were moved from the third floor to the open area and waited there for about 15 minutes as fire brigade and electricity officials inspected the situation." After the inspection, students were permitted to return to class, though power remained out. The school’s pre-primary section was dispersed early, with online classes conducted for the afternoon batch.
To address concerns, the school management issued a circular explaining the power outage, attributing it to a transformer blast outside the school. Authorities from both fire and electricity departments inspected the premises, and parents were informed that Thursday’s classes would be held online. According to an MSEDCL official, restoring power may take several days. "The school is a High Tension (HT) consumer with its own independent transformer. The management will hire a private agency to determine the cause of the short circuit before power can be restored."