10 patients rescued from eye clinic, fertility centre after fire in commercial building in Thane

Thane: Nine persons undergoing treatment at an eye clinic and another one at a fertility centre were rescued after a fire broke out on the 11th floor of a 16-storey commercial building in Maharashtra's Thane city, officials said.

The blaze erupted around 11 pm on Tuesday and was doused after five hours of efforts, said Yasin Tadvi, chief of the Regional Disaster Management Cell of the Thane Municipal Corporation.

Nobody was injured in the incident, he said.

"The fire broke out in the office of a trust on the 11th floor of the commercial complex located at Cadbury Junction in Khopat area of the city. Due to the fire, smoke engulfed the entire building," he said.

After being alerted, RDMC, fire brigade and Thane District Rescue Force (TDRF) personnel rushed to the site. Nine patients admitted to an eye clinic on the 7th floor and one person undergoing treatment at a fertility centre were rescued, he added.

Since it was night, all the offices in the building were shut, he said.

"As the office where the fire broke out was also closed, the firefighters found it difficult to douse the flames. The firefighters had to use special equipment to break open the office to extinguish the fire. The operation continued till around 4 am," he said.

The trust office was completely gutted in the incident, he said.