In brief
A building fire in Lucknow on Monday killed 15 people and left survivors scrambling for escape. The fire, which erupted in a pet shop and animation centre, engulfed the only staircase and trapped many occupants. Eyewitnesses reported people climbing down cables and jumping from windows to escape the smoke, while first‑responders breached a wall to reach the terrace. Authorities have ordered an inquiry and are investigating fire safety breaches, including the lack of emergency exits and biometric access controls that hindered evacuation.
An inquiry has been ordered after at least 15 people died in a fire that broke out in a building in the northern Indian city of Lucknow on Monday. The building housed a pet shop and an animation centre, and witnesses described people jumping from windows and climbing down cables to escape, while rescue teams broke through a wall to rescue survivors.
The fire erupted around 14:45 local time in Lucknow’s densely populated Aliganj area. The pet shop was on the ground floor, with the animation and 3D gaming centre on the two upper floors.
Flames and smoke engulfed the building’s only staircase, cutting off the sole exit. Firefighters reached the terrace via a neighbouring building, breaching a side wall to begin rescue efforts.
Witnesses reported panic as people trapped inside tried to escape the smoke; some climbed down power cables, while others jumped from windows. Many called for help from inside the building, and dozens were injured.
Anurag Ojha, who witnessed the blaze, told that residents saw a huge fire and heard people crying for help, prompting locals to break windows with stones to allow more to escape.
Police have filed charges over acts that caused or endangered lives and arrested four people in connection with the fire. Four officials have also been suspended.
The Lucknow fire comes less than a month after a blaze at a bed‑and‑breakfast in Delhi that also killed several people, highlighting the urgency of stricter enforcement of fire safety laws in India’s commercial districts.
