In yet another fire, 3 killed in Hyderabad residential building

The police said the fire broke out around 3.30 am in a timber depot and spread to the adjoining building in the Kushaiguda area.

BySumit Jha

Published Apr 16, 2023 | 4:28 PMUpdatedApr 16, 2023 | 4:28 PM

In yet another fire, 3 killed in Hyderabad residential building

In yet another fire in Hyderabad, three people — including a child — died in a residential complex early on Sunday, 16 April.

The police said the fire broke out around 3.30 am in Aditya Timber, a timber depot, and spread to the adjoining building in the Kushaiguda area.

“At around 3.30 am, the Fire Department received a call that there was a fire in a timber depot. Four fire engines along with the disaster response force (DRF) of the GHMC reached the spot and brought the fire under control,” the police said.

They added that the exact cause of the fire was being determined.

When the DRF team and the Fire Department started to inspect the building and nearby areas at around 6 am, they found a family of three had died due to asphyxiation in an adjacent building.

The blaze spread to the first floor of the residential building, where a couple and their child died.

They have been identified as Naresh(36), Suma (26), and Jaswanth (8). The family was a native of the Thungathurthi mandal n the Suryapet district of Telangana.

The escape route into the building was blocked due to thick smoke and the fire was raging at the building entrance.

“After we doused the fire, we went inside and found the bodies,” said ACP Kushiaguda Y Venkat Reddy in a statement.

The bodies are shifted to the mortuary.

Related: What was common, and avoidable, in recent Secunderabad fires?

Recent fires in Hyderabad

This is the fourth major fire-related tragedy in seven months in Hyderabad — leaving a total of 20 people asphyxiated or burnt alive.

On 16 March, an inferno at the sprawling Swapnalok Complex in Secunderabad left six people dead — all of them below 25 years.

The charred remains of three young men were found in the now-demolished Deccan Corporation building on Minister’s Road on 19 January this year.

Last year, eight people — mostly tourists — were engulfed in flames on 12 September when a massive fire broke out at the Ruby Pride Luxury Hotel.

The fire started in an electrical vehicle showroom in the building.