Noida, July 15 (IANS) The massive blaze that engulfed the entire four-storey building in Noida’s Mamura area resulted in the death of two people on Wednesday, both in their twenties.

One of the deceased has been identified as a 22-year-old girl named Sneha Srivastava, a native of Bihar, while the boy, believed to be in his late 20s, has not been identified yet.

According to the police, the deceased man sustained burn injuries on more than 80 per cent of his body, while the girl suffered 40 percent burn.

A detailed investigation into the matter is underway.

Meanwhile, the police have detained the building owner for questioning and are examining as to whether adequate fire safety measures were in place.

The tragic incident started around 11 a.m. when an electric scooter parked in the basement of the four-story building in Sector-66’s Mamura area suddenly exploded while charging.

Preliminary investigations reveal that the fire spread rapidly after the explosion, quickly engulfing the entire building. The inferno which broke out on the ground floor of a residential building spread quickly to nearby vehicles and swept through the residential building in Noida’s Sector-66. A thick plume of smoke was seen billowing out of the building.

At least 30 and 40 bikes parked in the basement were burnt to ashes in the flames.

A large number of people were present in the building at the time of the incident. Residents on upper floors of the house were trapped due to the smoke and fire; however, those on lower floors managed to escape.

Hundreds of locals gathered at the scene upon seeing the fire and plumes of smoke. Seven fire tenders arrived at the scene but faced difficulty reaching the spot due to narrow lanes and heavy crowd. Fire engines used long hoses to douse the blaze, but it took them more than three hours to bring the fire fully under control.

It was the makeshift bridge, erected by the firefighters using ladders, that rescued more than 100 people and helped them evacuate from the deadly trap.

Reports indicate that the four-story building housed approximately 50 rooms, where a large number of working professionals lived with their families.

–IANS

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