Hyderabad fire accident: Rescuers break wall to enter burning house
Two local residents, Mir Zahid and Mohd Azmat, were among the first to enter the building. They broke through a wall of a neighbouring structure to reach the family trapped inside.
“When we managed to get inside the building and reached the first floor, we saw this woman with her arms around the kids — two girls, a boy and an infant. She must have tried to shield them from the advancing flames,” said Zahid.
Elderly woman found holding children and mobile phone
The rescuers said the elderly woman was found holding four children tightly, all of them already dead. Zahid noted that she was clutching a mobile phone with the torch on, possibly trying to find a way through the smoke.
“They had little chance of escaping,” Zahid said.
Hyderabad fire accident: Scene too painful to forget, say volunteers
Fellow volunteer Mohd Azmat described the emotional impact of the scene. “We put a bedsheet on them. It was an unbearable scene. I don’t think I will ever be able to put into words what I saw in that house,” he said.The men also discovered two more bodies in the same room, bringing the total number of casualties inside the home to 17.
Investigation into fire cause underway
Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause of the fire. Local officials said that investigations are ongoing and that rescue operations were completed with the help of local volunteers and emergency responders.
The Gulzar Houz fire is one of the most deadly residential fires in Hyderabad in recent years.
