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Fire at Carlton Towers, Bangalore

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This large tower on the Old Airport Road in Bangalore houses many offices and eateries. Apparently, there was a fire in the building yesterday which started in the basement and spread to the 2nd and 3rd floors. The thick smoke led to panic. With the heavy glass facade, the windows were difficult to break to let fresh air get in. The exits were unapproachable due to heavy smoke and panic. Stupid lapses have been noted where staircases were locked, and the keys not available with anyone. The most bizarre thing was that people were jumping out of their 6th or 7th floor offices straight to the street. Some did it out of panic, and some others apparently on the advice of the firemen who stood with inadequate mattress type of things to catch them. This was ludicrous Many jumped to their deaths in this manner. And the horrific part was that all this was televised live. Luckily, I spared myself the agony and switched off the television.
The fire was not even big, and was controlled in very little time. The terrible smoke and panic were bigger problems. Some of the fire-extinguishing equipment was untouched showing a clear lack of awareness. Maybe, we need more fire drills to make sure that people stay focused, and do not panic. Also, then we would be aware of what must be done under such circumstances. With so many glass buildings in Bangalore – this is a scary reality : fire hazard. 
Please train the fire fighters well. They can’t ask people to jump from such higher floors with inadequate measures on the ground. Also, the traffic is such a problem in Bangalore. It is a nightmare for emergency vehicles to travel anywhere in such situations. Sometimes, the bystanders and people stopping by to “see” add to the chaos.
Accidents are sad, and loss of lives even sadder. In cases of such incidents, one can only count on one’s wit and some luck to take oneself through to the safety. As anywhere else in India, you find a lot of common people willing to help others out in a tragedy, before the emergency services even arrive. That proved to be a saving grace.

The incident was just so sad. Even the 10 lives lost should have been saved, if we were more aware.

7 responses to “Fire at Carlton Towers, Bangalore”

  1. Bhagyashree Avatar
    Bhagyashree

    Very true. To be sensible in moments of crisis is a big challenge, I think

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  2. DivSu Avatar
    DivSu

    I think the most horrible part was the bystanders. The fire guys found it tough to navigate through the chaos. When will we learn that tragedy is not drama 😦

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  3. Manoj Avatar
    Manoj

    As u ve rightly said, these firemen shud conduct, mock drills at the high raises once a while to let people know how should they behave in case of fire break out. good one keep it up

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  4. Rachna Avatar
    Rachna

    @Bhagyashree And, we have to train people towards facing this challenge effectively.@DivSu You are right. Why do we stop to stare? No one should be allowed to just stick around; unless,they are actively helping.@Manoj Yes, these fire drills are so uncommon in India. They ought to do it everywhere now. Thank you for visiting and for your encouragement.

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  5. creativemanika Avatar
    creativemanika

    No Rachna…I remember these mock drills used to happen in our office every six months and Tanay also talk about this quite often happening in his office but unfortunately very few people are interested in knowing all the facts and way outs in case of emergency….In fact they ignore these drills and take their personal calls..I have also observed that very few people read those emergency exit maps …Actually everyone bothers only when the accident occurs…Really sad but the fact.

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  6. Rachna Avatar
    Rachna

    @Manika It does not matter whether people wish to participate or not. It must be mandatory. In Gurdev’s office at Oracle in bangalore, it was compulsory to leave everything and go for the drill, right upto the top management. It was the same in his US office. We can’t have offices not strictly enforcing it. When done over and over again, one would know how to prepare for the emergency. So, instead of blaming people’s attitudes, we have to blame offices who do not do it the right way.

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  7. Rachna Avatar
    Rachna

    Now, it has been seen that there were so many maintenance issues — the fire alarm did not work, the sprinklers had no water, the emergency exits were locked and people were unaware about their location. Horrifyingly, 2000 l of diesel was stored on the roof, which luckily did not catch fire. Imagine, the inferno then. So, the maintenance and negligence is to blame as well as the panic.

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I’m Rachna

Welcome to Rachna says, my first abode on the internet where I share snippets of my mundane life, as I navigate empty nest with my husband. You can also get my recipes at my food blog, Rachna cooks.

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