Three major fires erupt in Mumbai on Diwali night no casualties

    Mumbai, Nov 9 (PTI) Three major fires broke out at separate locations across Mumbai on Diwali night, destroying several huts, shops, a garage, and parts of a commercial building, civic officials said on Monday.

    While no casualties were reported, the incidents prompted Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde to issue an urgent public appeal urging citizens to celebrate responsibly and refrain from bursting firecrackers near residential buildings or on footpaths.

    Firefighters took more than nine hours to extinguish a blaze at Haji Kasam Chawl (row tenement) on Dr Maheshwari Road in Dongri.

    The blaze was reported around 10 pm on Sunday and was initially classified as a Level-I fire but later upgraded to Level-II.

    A Level-I fire is generally handled with the initial deployment of firefighting resources, while a Level-II blaze requires additional personnel and equipment.

    Several shops and huts were engulfed in the blaze, which spread to electric wiring and installations, wooden furniture, LPG cylinders, chemical drums and tarpaulin sheets, a civic official said.

    Firefighters brought the blaze under control at 7.23 am on Monday, the official said.

    Another Level-II fire was reported at a garage on Marol Military Road near a school in Andheri at 10.51 pm on Sunday. It was extinguished at 3.50 am on Monday, after nearly five hours of hectic operations, the official said.

    The third incident was reported at Skyline Vida, a 10-storey commercial building near Jolly Gymkhana in Vidyavihar, at 11.56 pm on Sunday.

    The blaze spread from the 7th to the 10th floor. The fire brigade declared it a Level-II fire at 12.52 am and managed to extinguish it at 5.55 am on Monday, after nearly six hours, the official said.

    Meanwhile, Mayor Tawde, in a video appeal, said that celebrations should not put one's safety at risk and urged people to exercise caution while bursting firecrackers.

    "Our festive celebration should not become someone else's reason for sadness. Safety must be our utmost priority," she said, urging people to follow the Bombay High Court directions and refrain from bursting crackers on footpaths and in public places.

    She also advised citizens against bursting rockets and other aerial firecrackers, warning that they could stray into homes, damage property and endanger lives.

    Firecrackers should be lit away from residential buildings and other inhabited structures to prevent accidents, injuries and property damage, she said.

    "Let us celebrate responsibly and ensure that our festivities do not come at the cost of someone else's safety," Tawde said.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)