New Delhi: Three members of a family lost their lives after a major fire broke out at Delhi Metro Rail Corporation staff quarters in Adarsh Nagar in the early hours of Tuesday.
The victims were identified as Ajay (42), his wife Neelam (38), and their 10-year-old daughter Janhvi.
Officials from the Delhi Fire Services said they received a distress call around 2:39 a.m., reporting a blaze on the second floor of one of the residential buildings. Fire tenders were rushed to the spot immediately.
During the rescue operation, firefighters recovered three bodies from the affected flat. A firefighter also sustained injuries while battling the flames, officials confirmed.
Police have launched an investigation to determine the exact cause of the fire, while relief and assessment work continues at the site.
The incident comes close on the heels of another fire reported a day earlier in Mandawali, where a blaze erupted in a top-floor apartment of a five-storey building. That fire was triggered by a gas cylinder explosion, according to DFS officials. Three firefighters were injured during the operation and were taken to a nearby hospital. Their condition is stated to be stable.
In that case, police said a short circuit in a room heater sparked the fire, forcing the resident to flee and alert emergency services. A cooking gas cylinder later exploded during firefighting efforts, leading to injuries among personnel.
Meanwhile, DFS officials have flagged an acute staff shortage, warning that vacancies in supervisory and frontline roles are putting added pressure on firefighters and posing challenges to fire safety across the city.
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