BeauMonde Towers, Prabhadevi – June 13th, 2018

07th December 2018

More than 90 residents were evacuated and no injuries have been reported. The blaze reportedly broke out on the 33rd floor of the B-wing of the building. It was initially categorised as a level-II blaze but was soon reclassified to a level-III.

At least ten fire engines, two quick response vans, five water tankers, two hydraulic platforms and an ambulance rushed to the spot. It was reported that initially, B-wing residents did not realise there was a fire. They were alerted by the panicked cries of the residents of C-wing.  All residents were evacuated as a precautionary measure.

The building's security personnel helped the residents evacuate while the fire department was called. The guards knocked on every door during the evacuation and led the residents down by the stairwell.

The fire, which was initially confined to the 32nd and 33rd floor, later spread to the left of the tower. The hydraulic systems used to douse the fire, even with the help of ladders and extensions, could reportedly only reach the 28th floor. Firefighters struggled to control the blaze as flames could be seen in the top-left corner at the back of the building.

It has been reported that this is the third time the building caught fire. Two fires broke out in the building during its construction.

A fire officer said the glass and aluminium facade drastically reduced the ventilation, which made it difficult to douse the fire. He said the fire officers at the top also faced difficulty in resting the ladders too close to the building because the facade jutted out.

Ward chairman Kishori Pednekar blamed building security for the continuing blaze. She said unskilled staff initially went for rescue operations, and the team tried to douse the fire for 25 minutes before calling the fire department.

The building houses the residence and office of Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone, who was out of town when the fire occurred.