30 hours on, fire fighting still underway at Mumbai market

The blaze erupted around 4.30 pm on Sunday in the ground-plus-three-storey structure, located near Juma mosque in South Mumbai, but fire fighting operation was on even after 30 hours, officials said on Monday.

It was initially tagged as a 'level-3' (major) fire, but was later escalated to 'level-4' ((massive), the officials said. Seventeen fire vehicles, as many jumbo water tankers along with three turn-table ladders and an ambulance were involved in the operation, they said.

Firefighters were at the spot and efforts were still underway to douse the flames, a fire official said, adding the area is enveloped in a thick layer of smoke. During the operation, two firefighters received injuries and were rushed to the government-run J J Hospital located nearby, he said.

Both of them were later discharged from the hospital, the official said. The cause of the fire was yet to be ascertained, he said.

According to another Fire Brigade official, as the building has godowns housing garments, cutlery and chemicals, thick smoke was emanating from it, making it difficult to put out the inferno. The official said this is probably the first time after the 2012 blaze in Mantralaya (state secretariat) that a fire fighting operation has gone on for so long in the metropolis.