Two minors killed in Sagarpur factory fire

Two brothers — aged five and six years — were killed after a slippers manufacturing unit in south-west Delhi’s Sagarpur caught fire on Friday afternoon. The children lived with their parents in the manufacturing unit on the ground floor of the three-storey building.

Police said that the incident took place when the parents of the children were out for some work. The mother of the children had allegedly left the house after locking the gate from outside, the police and fire departments officials said.

Delhi Fire Services (DFS) chief Atul Garg said that the fire control room received a call at around 3pm regarding a blaze in a slippers manufacturing factory in P-block in Sagarpur.

“Three fire tenders were rushed to the spot. It was a small fire, but there was a lot of smoke because of the presence of rubber materials. The blaze was doused immediately. By the time our rescue team could reach, the two children had suffered burns and been rescued by the locals and taken to a hospital, where they were declared brought dead. They died of suffocation,” said Garg, adding that the fire may have been caused due to a short circuit.

Deputy commissioner of police (southwest) Ingit Pratap Singh said that nearly a dozen people, who lived in the upper floors, were safely rescued by the local police and locals of the area. He said that the police had roped in a team from the forensic science laboratory (FSL) to inspect the spot and ascertain the exact cause of the fire.

Fire officials said that the children’s father was a worker at the factory and made rubber and polymer slippers. The family had shifted to the building on rent on December 1.

The police said they were trying to find out if the person running the factory had proper permits.