At least ten people were killed after a massive fire broke out at a restaurant in South Delhi’s Malviya Nagar area on Wednesday morning. A total of 37 people were rescued by firefighters, police personnel and local residents, and were rushed to nearby hospitals.
Local BJP MLA Satish Upadhyay said he could not comment on the death toll at this stage. He added that a few foreign nationals were also reportedly staying at the building where the incident occurred.
“My first priority is the rescue operation. We won’t spare anyone. Whoever is found responsible for this incident, including if the owner is operating without the required licence, will face strict action,” Upadhyay said.
The Lemon Restaurant had permission to construct only six rooms, but it was operating 25 rooms, which was a major violation. This raises serious questions about possible regulatory lapses and how such an expansion was allowed despite the approved limit.
According to officials, the basement of the building was locked from outside. Rescue teams broke open the lock and evacuated people trapped inside.
Several people reportedly jumped from windows in an attempt to save their lives.
The incident falls under the jurisdiction of Saket Police Station.
According to the Delhi Fire Service (DFS), a call regarding the fire at Lemon Green Restaurant in Malviya Nagar was received at around 9:00 am. Initially, seven fire tenders were rushed to the spot, while ten additional fire tenders were later deployed to assist in firefighting and rescue operations.
A fire department official said that by 9:45 am, firefighters had informed the control room that three people had been rescued from the basement.
At around 11:20 am, the DFS received another update from personnel at the scene stating that 35 more people had been rescued by DFS teams, police personnel and members of the public, and shifted to hospitals.
Two additional people were rescued by noon, taking the total number of rescued individuals to 37.
Teams from the local police station and other emergency agencies were also pressed into service for the rescue operation.
Police deployed additional personnel to manage the crowd, and access to the incident site was restricted.
Cooling operations are currently underway.
“Ten people lost their lives in the incident. We rescued three people who were trapped inside the basement,” a fire department official said.
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta described the incident as tragic and expressed concern over the loss of lives.
Further details are awaited.
