One Firefighter Dead, 14 Injured in Delhi’s Peeragarhi Factory Fire

New Delhi: One fire-fighter died on Thursday and 14 were injured, including 13 firefighters, when a battery factory collapsed in northwest Delhi's Peeragarhi following an explosion due to a fire that broke out early in the morning, officials said.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal confirmed that one firefighter had succumbed to injuries sustained during rescue operation. He was probably among those trapped under the debris of the building in Udyog Nagar area, an official said.

A large portion of the two-storey building collapsed following an explosion when firefighters were dousing the blaze, the official said, adding that fire department had received a call at 4.23 a.m.

Plumes of smoke billowed out from the building as the fire brigade personnel battled to contain the blaze. An eyewitness said several explosions were heard as the blaze gutted down the building.

The National Disaster Response Force and civil authorities rushed to the spot to control the situation, an official said, adding that 35 fire tenders were at the spot.

The injured, including a security guard of the factory, were rushed to nearby hospitals, a police officer said.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said he was monitoring the situation.

"V sad to hear this. Am closely monitoring the situation. Fire personnel trying their best. Praying for the safety of those trapped," Kejriwal tweeted.

Newsclick adds: The fire incident comes within a month of a massive blaze in Delhi’s Anaj Mandi, which claimed over 40 lives, mainly of workers who were sleeping within the school bag-making factory. The factory reportedly did not have nay clearance from the fire department. Around a 100 people were sleeping when the blaze swept through.