Hyderabad fire: Five bodies found at Nampally furniture shop

Five bodies, including that of a woman, were retrieved from a four-storey furniture shop building in Nampally, Hyderabad, where a major fire broke out on Saturday (January 24), officials said on Sunday.

Rescue operations have been underway for the past 21 hours to save five people, including two children, who are feared to be trapped in the basement of the building after the blaze erupted at the furniture shop on Saturday afternoon.

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“Five bodies, including that of a woman, were retrieved from the building. The search and rescue for others are ongoing,” a senior police official told PTI.

Dead were families of shop workers

The fire had broken out at Bacha Crystal Furniture, located on the ground floor of the commercial building. Multiple agencies, including police, fire services, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel and the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA), launched coordinated rescue operations following the incident.

Although the fire was brought under control, officials said thick smoke billowing out of the building has made rescue efforts difficult.

Those trapped were family members of a security guard and other workers. Accommodation had been provided for workers in the basement of the building, officials said.

Action against shop owner

Expressing shock over the incident, Transport and Hyderabad District in-charge Minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Sunday said the government would support the families of the victims.

He directed the police officials to file criminal cases against the shop owner for "not following" fire safety guidelines.

Azharuddin visits the gutted building

Telangana minister Mohammad Azharuddin visited the spot on Saturday after the fire broke out in the building to oversee the rescue operation.

Earlier, Hyderabad City Police Commissioner V.C. Sajjanar had said that police and disaster response teams were engaged in rescue operations at the site and that traffic movement in the Nampally area had been severely disrupted. The Hyderabad Traffic Police had also advised visitors to postpone visits to the Numaish exhibition due to congestion caused by the fire incident.

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Fire engines, ambulances and heavy equipment were deployed at the site, while officials evacuated nearby buildings as a precautionary measure.

(With agency inputs)