JOIN USA fire broke out on the third and fourth floors of Oriental Bank of Commerce’s Connaught Place branch on Tuesday.
Delhi Fire Services rushed 12 fire tenders to Harsha Bhawan commercial complex in E-Block.
They were kept on the toes due to another fire at AIIMS, but no injury or serious damage to property was reported.
According to DFS Director A K Sharma, the fire broke out around 11.40 am.An initial probe has revealed that the fire started at the generator room of the building where an air-conditioning plant is kept.
“The smoke from the fire indicated that it probably started from the burning of the electrical wiring. It may have been due to a short-circuit in the AC plant,” Sharma said, adding it took them around 30 minutes to douse the flames.
Around 100 people, including employees and customers of the bank, managed to get out of the building before the fire spread.
Several people were also evacuated with the help of a hydraulic crane from the windows and the terrace.
A bank official said important documents were not damaged in the fire. Police also had to block traffic on parts of CP for unobstructed entry of the fire engines.
“It was a successful operation as there was no loss of life or injury to anyone. We are currently trying to ascertain the value of goods lost in the fire,” Sharma added.
A police officer added that firefighting efforts were hampered due to lack of fire safety at the building.
“We have been told that many of the sprinklers were not working and that there was no smoke management system,” the officer said.
Police said an action may be taken after they receive the fire department’s report and OBC completes its internal review.
A case of endangering life or personal safety of others under section 336 of the Indian Penal Code may be filed.