Locked terrace door traps residents in deadly Delhi building fire
The blaze broke out around 3:30am at a building in Vivek Vihar when most residents were asleep, making escape difficult as flames spread quickly
A locked terrace door and lack of emergency exits trapped residents inside a residential building in Delhi, leaving at least nine people dead in a devastating fire early Sunday.
The blaze broke out around 3:30am at a building in Vivek Vihar when most residents were asleep, making escape difficult as flames spread quickly.
Residents said iron grills on one side of the building and a locked staircase leading to the roof left them with no way out. The building, with a basement and four floors, had only one staircase and no emergency exit, which slowed evacuation efforts.
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Each floor had two flats, one at the front and one at the back. As the fire spread from the rear, people living there could not jump out because of the iron grills. Reaching the front side was also difficult as the flames had already spread there.
Some residents tried to move through smoke-filled corridors to reach the terrace, but found the door locked, leaving them trapped inside.
Many victims died from suffocation as thick smoke and heat filled the building.
The fire also spread to a nearby building, reportedly due to little or no gap between the two structures.
Witnesses described scenes of panic, with people and children crying out for help from inside their homes. Eyewitnesses said two children even attempted to jump from the front side of the building to escape the fire.
