Carlton Towers fire Nine people died

24.02.10 : Nine lives could have been saved if the city’s motorists had given the fire tenders the space to drive and had the terrified passersby who gathered around Carlton Towers not advised the trapped people to jump off the building.

The first of the fire tenders could reach Carlton Towers, on Old Airport Road only after 30 minutes of the first call was made.

This delay was enough to make the jittery crowd ask the people, who were engulfed in a cloud of smoke inside to the building, to jump into heaps of clothes and plastic sheets.

It was advice that was fatal. All the nine killed died from injuries sustained by the fall from height.

P S Sandhu, IGP Fire and emergency services, said: “Many of our vehicles carrying rescue equipment failed to reach because of the traffic. Although the police cooperated, clearing the crowd around the tower was a Herculean task. Thousands of passersby had gathered around the tower.” Even after reaching the tower, the Fire personnel had a tough time finding a vantage point to start rescue operation from. Director Fire and Safety, B G Chengappa said, “There were a number of obstructions around the building including a billboard placed at the corner of the tower. Also, there was a pole at the entrance and each van took about 15 minutes to negotiate it.” Fire personnel said the people inside the building were lucky that the fire did not spread to the terrace where diesel was stored.