The midnight of Thursday will be etched in the collective consciousness of Mumbaikar as one of the most harrowing nights after the 2008 terror attack. A fire juggler’s antics went awry while lives were lost and many injured.
Birthday party turns into a tragedy
Khushboo Jayesh Bansali, 29, from Tardeo, was celebrating her birthday at a trendy rooftop restaurant with a group of friends.
The flaming bottle fell on the alcohol stock at the bar which soon became a bonfire. The billowing flames sent Khushi and her friends scurrying into the washroom, where the toxic smoke snuffed out their lives. Eleven of the 14 who died were women, mostly in their twenties and early thirties. 55 others were injured.
“When the flaming bottle fell on the alcohol stock a blaze erupted which spread in the nick of time, duly abetted by the midnight breeze,” said one of the security guards who did not wish to be named. Within seconds the fire had engulfed the two adjacent rooftop restaurants — “1 Above” pub on the terrace and Mojo Bristo on the third floor one level below, gutting in no time the makeshift roof made of tarpaulin and bamboo sticks.
“Almost all the victims died due to smoke inhalation; most of them didn’t even have 10% burn injuries,” said Dr. Rajesh Dhere, senior forensic expert from the hospital. The two gutted pubs are located in the Trade House Building in Kamala Mills compound in Lower Parel area, a popular night spot as well as commercial hub housing several offices, including national television channels.
‘‘I was in the night shift. We heard people screaming at the pub. Initially, we thought it was the usual merrymaking at the party,” said Sanjay Jadhav, a producer of a news channel. “When I came out of my office, I saw that a fire had broken out on the roof.’’
A senior food and beverages manager of a restaurant in the vicinity, who like many others rushed to the spot, told FPJ, “Many youngsters took refuge in the washroom by locking themselves inside. The exhaust was not working as the power was switched off. The kids were choked to death by the toxic fumes.”
There were nearly 250 guests in the two pubs running helter-skelter searching for the sole exit which was not demarcated. Access to yet another exit door was impeded by material stacked outside. It was finally prised open by security guards who showed great presence of mind. Most survivors were ushered out of this door.
Dr. Sulabha Arora, who was present at the spot, said, “The fire engulfed the whole place in a matter of seconds. In the confusion, none could figure out where the fire exits were. Nor was there any time to reach out to anyone.” Incidentally, the pub manager and the staff, too, had no idea how to handle the crisis. So, there was no one to take charge of the situation and usher the guests down the narrow staircase.
What ensued was a stampede. ‘‘People were falling over me even as the ceiling came hurtling down in flames,” a survivor said in a tweet. “I still don’t know how I got out alive.” More than 12 fire tenders were rushed which doused the blaze at 6.30 a.m. It took nearly 45 minutes to an hour for the fire tenders and ambulances to reach the spot. Relatives of the deceased have expressed shock over the sluggish response of the fire service.
“It at least 45 minutes to one hour for the agencies to reach the spot. My daughter’s best friend died because of the criminal delay,’’ said Vallabh Mehta, father of Neha Jain, Khushboo’s friend.
Moreover, Mehta said, the ambulances were not stacked with oxygen. Birthday girl Khushboo had fallen unconscious and was rushed to King Edward Memorial Hospital. “Had there been oxygen supply in the ambulance, it may have helped revive her,” said Mehta. The BMC has initiated an inquiry and five junior officials have been suspended. Of the 55 injured, 14 are still in Bhatia Hospital.
USA-based brothers along with beloved aunt
Little did Michigan-based Dhairya (26) and Vishwa (23) Lalani know that a celebration with their senior citizen aunt Premila Kenia (68) would become their last get-together with family and friends.
Both the computer engineers had gone to 1Above restaurant for a party organized by Kenia to celebrate their two-week-long visit. KEM Hospital doctors said that the bodies of the brothers were found in the ladies’ washroom of the restaurant along with their aunt Premila. A family friend said that the siblings had been attending parties and marriages of friends and family members for the last two weeks. To celebrate their visit, their aunt invited a few friends and family members and decided to have a huge party.
A family friend said, “Both Dhairya and Vishwa had gone to the restaurant with our aunt Pramila Kenia for dinner. As per reports, when the fire broke and a stampede ensued, both managed to escape but returned for Pramila who was in the washroom.
“We are utterly devastated. Dhairya had come on a holiday for two months and Vishwa had just started helping his father in business. They tried saving lives but lost their own. I got information about my brother’s disappearance and subsequent death at 2 am. Proper investigations are needed to bring the guilty to justice,” said Viral Chheda, brother to deceased Dhairya and Vishwa.
‘‘All the three had very little burn injuries and possibly died due to suffocation. Since the bodies of the two men were inside the ladies’ washroom, we strongly suspect they came there to rescue their aunt,” said forensic experts of the KEM Hospital.
The ‘1 Above’ pub and its owners
Pub 1 Above, co-owned by brothers Hitesh and Jigar Sanghvi and Abhijeet Manka, was gutted in the fire. All three partners were untraceable when reports last trickled in. Search parties are scouring for them.
The pub is run by C Grade Hospitality. Blaming an adjoining property for the fire, 1 Above management said, “According to our staff, a fire began to emanate from the adjacent quarters to our premises.” It did not name the property from where the fire started. However, it named and blamed Mojo’s Bistro for not having an emergency exit, which led to their guests thronging to 1 Above’s emergency exit. Mojo’s Bistro was also destroyed in the blaze but no lives were lost.
“We believe all their guests were told to go through our premises as we have an emergency exit,” the 1 Above statement said. “1Above has all its fire safety regulations, licenses, procedures and norms in place. We’ve been able to help save many lives thanks to our fire safety protocols,” the statement claimed.
The pub claimed that it conducts quarterly fire safety and crisis management training. It has over 10 fire extinguishers and adequate fire safety signatures at its premises as is required by the authorities. The pub management said their property did not keep gas cylinders near their rooftop premises and that the gas bank was maintained on the ground floor.
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