Six persons, including three children, died while 13 others were injured when a fire broke out in a four-storey building in south-east Delhi’s Jamia Nagar on Tuesday.

The police said the deceased have been identified as Nagma (30), her daughters Zikra (10) and Aamna (8); Soha (34), Adyan (8). One person is yet to be unidentified.

Firemen injured

The injured — Nagma’s husband Athar; Adyan’s parents Faiz and Shabana, his sister Adeeba and brother Rihan; Soha’s husband Umar; Saima, Sharique, Shabha, Waseem, fire station officer Tara Chand, head constable Ram Niwas, and fire operators Dilbag and Mohan Lal — are undergoing treatment at Holy Family Hospital.

The police said a PCR call was received at 2.30 a.m. regarding a fire in a building in Zakir Nagar. Eight PCR vans, seven fire tenders and two CATS ambulances were deployed to the spot.

Thirty-two-year-old Juanid Ahmed, first-floor resident of the building that has 13 flats, recalled that he was woken up by screams at 2.10 a.m. He said he rushed to the balcony but could only see smoke. “The fire started in the electricity meter on the pole next to the building. Through the PVC wires, it reached the ground floor where several parked vehicles caught fire. The blaze then spread upwards. The staircase was full of smoke and none of us could use it to vacate the building. The main gate and terrace were also locked,” he said.

His neighbours put up a wooden ladder to help him and his family of five vacate the flat. Some crossed over to the adjacent building using a rope of blankets and sheets. “The fire mostly impacted those living on the front side of the building. Those living on the backside managed to escape from balconies as there was little smoke there,” said Ahmed.

Third-floor occupants — Athar and his family — were stuck in their balcony shouting for help. “People had put mattresses on the street as Athar and his family decided to jump from their balcony. Soha jumped from the fourth floor even after we told her not to,” he said, adding that Nagma, another third-floor resident and Soha jumped to their death.

Electricity snapped

Junaid said that the electricity remained disconnected for nearly 90 minutes after the fire broke out.

By the time the police and fire officials reached the spot, the locals had managed to rescue some people. They alleged that the fire tenders reached late but also admitted that the lanes are cramped.

A fire department official said they got delayed by a few minutes because of vehicles parked in the narrow lanes. He, however, added that residents were quick to remove their vehicles to let the fire engines pass.

Fire station officer Tara Chand, who was among the injured, said that officials had put a ladder on top of one of the fire engines to reach the third floor even as the fire was spreading. “Two women had jumped by the time we reached. We told people we will rescue them and they should not jump. We climbed up the ladder and rescued a couple from the third floor,” he said.

Two-hour-long battle

The fire officials, along with locals, broke the wall of the terrace of the adjacent building and managed to rescue people. “Breaking the locks would have taken more time and so we broke the wall,” he said, adding that the operation took nearly two hours.

The four fire officers complained of vomiting and breathlessness after being exposed to heat and smoke.

The police have registered a case under relevant sections of the IPC, including causing death by negligence and negligent conduct with respect to fire. A probe is on to identify the unknown victim, the police added.