At least 14 dead in Mumbai fire

Mumbai: A birthday bash at a pub in a central Mumbai building ended in the deaths of 14 people, including 11 women, after a fire broke out shortly after midnight, officials said.

Most of the victims died of suffocation.

Twenty-one people were injured in the fire, which broke out at the hotel terrace on the third floor of the commercial complex at Lower Parel area, the official said.

"The incident occurred after 12.30 am at One Above pub, located on the third floor of the Trade House Building in Kamala Mills compound on Senapati Bapat Marg, a commercial hub of the city," a police official said.

Teams of fire brigade and police rushed to the spot and a rescue operation was launched to pull out the people trapped inside the pub, the official added.

"The fire brigade rescued at least 35 injured persons, who were trapped inside the hotel. They were shifted to a hospital," he said.

"During treatment, 14 people, including 11 women, were declared dead. Most of the victims died of suffocation," he said adding that 21 others sustained serious burn injuries.

Police have booked Hratesh Sanghvi, Jigar Sanghvi and Abhijeet Manka of C Grade Hospitality, which manages the pub, along with others, under IPC sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others).

They have been booked by N M Joshi Marg Police Station and two of them have been detained.