New Delhi:
When a fire started in a Maujpur restaurant at 10.34 pm on Tuesday, the nearest way out for many of those inside was a window. A toddler was thrown from a first-floor window in Maujpur on Tuesday night, and the people standing below caught him. The child was among those who escaped a fire at Udham Fish Point, a restaurant in northeast Delhi.
More than 10 people, men and women, jumped from the restaurant's windows. A woman was also seen jumping onto the terrace of a nearby building. Another video shows women and children jumping from the roof.
Residents told news agency PTI that many people rushed to the spot to help. They arranged bedsheets and mattresses to cushion the falls from the first floor. One local resident told the news agency that the flames engulfed the building soon after the fire began, which caused panic among those inside.
According to a fire department report, it started in the restaurant's kitchen on the ground floor of a four-storey building.
The restaurant staff put out the fire before it could spread, and a fire tender also reached the spot. Police said further enquiry was underway.
The incident has raised questions about fire safety in restaurants. After the videos spread online, Shahdara North Zone Chairperson Pankaj Luthra ordered immediate action against restaurants in the area that operate in violation of regulations.
Luthra said such incidents cannot be taken lightly, and directed that inspections be carried out on restaurants that do not follow the prescribed rules and safety standards.
Any establishment found violating regulations will face action under the law, he said. He added that public safety is paramount in any commercial establishment, and that a lack of safe exit routes can turn a minor incident into a major disaster. Negligence at any level will not be tolerated, he said.
With inputs from Ravi Dalmia