NEW DELHI: A fire broke out early Sunday morning at Antara care facility in south Delhi’s Greater Kailash II, resulting in the tragic death of two senior citizens.
The deceased have been identified as Kanchan Arora (86) and Kamal (92). Representatives of the facility said apart from them, 13 inmates and nine staff members who were the first responders were present in the building when the fire broke out, all of whom were evacuated. The care home said those rescued have been shifted to another facility maintained by the group.
The blaze started after 5am in a room on the third floor, possibly due to some candles, staff members said, not wishing to be named.
In a statement, the facility said four fire brigades brought the blaze under control within 30 minutes.
“The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. While all other residents, doctors and team members have been evacuated safely from the facility, two of our residents have unfortunately succumbed to the fire. All other people have been rescued and moved to another facility of ours where they are receiving the necessary medical care,” the statement said.
It added, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families. We are actively cooperating with the investigating authorities and will take appropriate action as required.”
DCP (south) Chandan Chowdhary said, “On receiving the call around 5:30am, all staff of Chittaranjan Park police station reached the spot and tried to control the fire. Five fire tenders and a CAT ambulance also went to the spot. One of the senior citizens has been shifted to Max Hospital Saket while the other 12 have been shifted to another branch of the facility in Okhla.”
“After putting off the fire, two completely burnt bodies were found during the search of the premises. Both the crime and mobile FSL team were called to the spot. Legal action will be taken under the provision of law,” Chowdhary said.
“Exemplary work was done by the staff of Chittaranjan Park police station who successfully rescued 13 elderly people,” he added.
Among those rescued were Avatar Kaur (86), Sarifa (59), Alizabeth (69) and Nayan Saha (89).
Kanchan Arora, a resident of Alaknanda, had been staying at the facility since December 2 and was scheduled to return home after a two-month stay, according to her help Rina Singh.
“I have been working with the family for almost a decade now and her health was fine. All her children are settled in different parts of the world and it had just been a month since she moved to the facility. It was because of the biting cold that she was supposed to stay there till end of January,” said Singh.
Recounting how her calls to Arora on Sunday morning had gone unanswered, Singh said, “I called her to wish her a good new year but there was no reply. I thought that maybe she was having breakfast or had gone to the washroom. When I reached the house for my daily work, the neighbours informed me about the incident. I am still in shock. Her children are on their way.”
Kamal, whose grandson had met her the previous night itself, on the other hand, had been a resident of the facility since April last year.
The deceased have been identified as Kanchan Arora (86) and Kamal (92). Representatives of the facility said apart from them, 13 inmates and nine staff members who were the first responders were present in the building when the fire broke out, all of whom were evacuated. The care home said those rescued have been shifted to another facility maintained by the group.
The blaze started after 5am in a room on the third floor, possibly due to some candles, staff members said, not wishing to be named.
In a statement, the facility said four fire brigades brought the blaze under control within 30 minutes.
“The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained. While all other residents, doctors and team members have been evacuated safely from the facility, two of our residents have unfortunately succumbed to the fire. All other people have been rescued and moved to another facility of ours where they are receiving the necessary medical care,” the statement said.
It added, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families. We are actively cooperating with the investigating authorities and will take appropriate action as required.”
DCP (south) Chandan Chowdhary said, “On receiving the call around 5:30am, all staff of Chittaranjan Park police station reached the spot and tried to control the fire. Five fire tenders and a CAT ambulance also went to the spot. One of the senior citizens has been shifted to Max Hospital Saket while the other 12 have been shifted to another branch of the facility in Okhla.”
“After putting off the fire, two completely burnt bodies were found during the search of the premises. Both the crime and mobile FSL team were called to the spot. Legal action will be taken under the provision of law,” Chowdhary said.
“Exemplary work was done by the staff of Chittaranjan Park police station who successfully rescued 13 elderly people,” he added.
Among those rescued were Avatar Kaur (86), Sarifa (59), Alizabeth (69) and Nayan Saha (89).
Kanchan Arora, a resident of Alaknanda, had been staying at the facility since December 2 and was scheduled to return home after a two-month stay, according to her help Rina Singh.
“I have been working with the family for almost a decade now and her health was fine. All her children are settled in different parts of the world and it had just been a month since she moved to the facility. It was because of the biting cold that she was supposed to stay there till end of January,” said Singh.
Recounting how her calls to Arora on Sunday morning had gone unanswered, Singh said, “I called her to wish her a good new year but there was no reply. I thought that maybe she was having breakfast or had gone to the washroom. When I reached the house for my daily work, the neighbours informed me about the incident. I am still in shock. Her children are on their way.”
Kamal, whose grandson had met her the previous night itself, on the other hand, had been a resident of the facility since April last year.
