Man dies of suffocation in Nawa Kadal blaze

Srinagar, Feb 29:  A man died of suffocation during a fire incident at Downtown Srinagar on Thursday.

Officials said the incident occurred Thursday evening at Jamalata area of Nawa Kadal during which three houses were gutted.

Assistant Director F&E Service Aaqib Hussain said that an elderly person identified as Bashir Ahmad died due to suffocation while two people were rescued from a house.

“We started operation, and multiple fire tenders were pressed to douse off the flames. There were a few residents stuck in a house. A house owner named Bashir Ahmad died due to suffocation while his wife and other family members were rescued. Our firemen did their best to prevent the fire from spreading. The area is congested and our focus was to save lives and ensure that fire does not spread to other houses,” Hussain said.

The officials said that locals also assisted in the operation. They said that timely action by fire and emergency services saved many houses from getting involved.

“We appeal to locals to avoid parking vehicles on the roads as it hinders rescue operations. The initial minutes of the operation are very crucial and locals should cooperate and ensure not to hinder it,” said another official.

Meanwhile, the residents of the area appealed to the authorities to build the proposed fire and emergency station at Maharaj Gunj. They said there is a huge requirement for the fire station in the vicinity as the area is highly congested.