Overview
- Firefighters in Bhopal deployed 12 engines and roughly 50 water tankers after a pre-dawn blaze near the Patra underpass spread from a sawmill to a decorator showroom and was controlled after about four hours.
- Preliminary loss estimates range from Rs 3 crore to Rs 4 crore, and traders noted it was the second major fire in the timber market in about 45 days, heightening safety concerns near homes, a petrol pump and railway tracks.
- Casualty reports from the Bhopal incident differ, with the city fire officer telling ANI there were no casualties, while other reports say three to four workers suffered minor injuries.
- In Mumbai, a fire at City Mall in Andheri West was confined to a top-storey duct, led to partial evacuation and a brief power cut, and was brought under control in roughly 40 minutes with no injuries reported.
- Separate fires in Pune’s JM Road garage and Pimpri-Chinchwad’s City One Mall, as well as incidents in Thane and Santacruz, were contained quickly without injuries, as the BMC reported 1,221 fire-safety inspections and action against 59 establishments ahead of New Year events.