Two fires, one pattern. On Sunday, a factory-cum-godown in Swaroop Nagar and a godown in Dallupura gutted. Six people injured, not by fire, but by jumping off buildings in panic. In Dallupura, 25 fire tenders fought for six hours.
The Swaroop Nagar unit made judo outfits and boxing gloves. It stored rexine waste and cotton webbing in a 200 sq yard building with a basement, ground floor, first floor and a tin shed - a textbook violation waiting to ignite. The Dallupura godown stored electric panels, wood and chemicals, engulfed in thick black smoke that choked operations.
No casualties were reported, officials said. But the absence of death should not be read as success. Five injured were sent to Babu Jagjivan Ram Hospital, one to Burari. All jumped from adjacent buildings, not the one on fire. One fire official fell unconscious from smoke inhalation.
This is Delhi's industrial safety script. Small units in congested villages, no segregation of hazardous material, illegal upper floors, and workers with zero evacuation training. When fire erupts, panic becomes the bigger hazard.
Deputy Chief Fire Officer M K Chattopadhyay said the call for Dallupura came at 3:30 pm, four tenders were sent, but soon the entire godown was declared "medium category" and more were pressed. Residents vacated homes as a precaution, and traffic on Noida Link Road snarled because people stopped to film the blaze.
Police are yet to ascertain what triggered the fires. That is always the last line. The first line should be: why were workers locked in a cycle where jumping from a roof feels safer than finding an exit? Until fire audits are linked to licensing, and godowns are moved out of Lal Dora villages, Delhi will continue to count tenders, not prevention.