Fire Breaks Out in Delhi's New Friends Colony Due to AC Blast; Two Puppies Die, Seven People Rescued

New Delhi: A major fire erupted on Sunday afternoon in a residential building in New Friends Colony, triggered by an air conditioner explosion. The blaze led to the tragic death of two puppies from suffocation, though prompt action by firefighters prevented any human casualties.

According to preliminary investigations, the fire broke out around 3 PM on the first floor of the house when the AC unit exploded, possibly due to a short circuit. The unit then fell onto a bed, setting it ablaze and rapidly filling the room with thick smoke. The elderly couple who reside in the house had stepped out just half an hour earlier, leaving the property unoccupied by humans at the time of the incident. However, their two puppies were trapped inside and could not be saved.

As flames and smoke spread to the upper floors, panicked residents alerted the fire department and police. A team from the Mathura Road Fire Station reached the spot within minutes and launched a swift rescue operation.

Station Officer Rajkumar detailed the response: "We received a distress call regarding a fire at approximately 3:40 PM and arrived on the scene within five minutes. Upon arrival, we were informed that several children were trapped inside. Our team immediately deployed ladders, initiated rescue operations, and began suppressing the flames. We successfully rescued seven people in total, including an 8-year-old girl, a 10-year-old boy, two other children, two women, and one man."

He added that the lack of initial information about pets in the building unfortunately meant the two puppies could not be saved. Five fire tenders were deployed, and the fire was eventually brought under control.