Fire In SPA Building Near ITO, Delhi Now Brought Under Control, No Casualties

New Delhi: Delhi's busiest intersection at ITO (Income Tax Office) was thrown into disarray Monday morning after a fire broke out in the second floor of the School of Planning and Architecture building on Vikas Marg near the Public Works Department (PWD) headquarters. Flames were suddenly seen rising from the building, prompting an immediate alert to the Fire Department.

As soon as flames began rising from the structure, it caused panic and commotion across the area. So far, details of the extent of damage caused by the fire have not yet emerged, but the fire department has reported that there are no casualties. Being Monday, there are numerous government employees present in the building since the morning.

The Delhi Fire Service (DFS) said it received information about the fire at 9.37 am. By 10.30 am, they reported that the fire was under control. At 11 am, DFS division officer Somvir Singh reported that the eight fire tenders currently at the spot are carrying out cooling down operations.

NOTE: Certain media reports have incorrectly stated that the fire broke out in the Ministry of Education office, which is actually located at Kartavya Bhavan-2, Dr Rajendra Prasad Road, New Delhi, not in the premises of the SPA, located on Vikas Marg.

Fire In 4-Storey Building In Mukherjee Nagar

Earlier, late on Sunday night, a fire broke out in a four-storey building in the Mukherjee Nagar area of ​​the national capital. The blaze caused chaos in the locality, and a massive plume of smoke billowed into the sky. The sight of the smoke caused panic among residents.

The DFS said that they received a report regarding a fire at 10.30 pm on Sunday. Fire brigade teams successfully brought the fire under control around 12.15 am, and rescued the people who were trapped inside.

No Survivors In Saturday's Mehrauli Building Collapse

In yet another incident in Delhi, rescue teams on Sunday found "no signs of survivors or live victims" under the debris of a Mehrauli five-storey building that had collapsed on Saturday, despite using advanced mechanical equipment and sniffer dogs, officials said. Six people have lost their lives, and seven others sustained injuries in the incident.

Speaking with media, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) Commandant Suneel Kumar Singh said work to remove the debris is currently underway. He said that no trace of a living person was found in the debris, neither through sniffer dogs nor through other equipment. "Work of removing debris is underway. The NDRF team is on the ground and is on standby. If needed, they will continue their work. Sniffer dogs are used to locate survivors trapped inside. They track scents and provide indicators that dog handlers can interpret. However, in our search using dogs, no survivor was indicated. Therefore, using all our equipment, whether mechanical or canine resources, we haven't found any trace of a live victim," he said.

The building that collapsed was located in Gali No 5, Western Marg, Said-ul-Ajaib, near Saket Metro Station. According to officials, information regarding the building collapse was first received at around 7.35 pm by beat staff of Mehrauli police station, during a routine patrol in Said-ul-Ajab village. The personnel immediately rushed to the spot and called for backup, following which the first PCR call was logged at 7.38 pm. (with agency inputs)

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