After a fire started in her kitchen on Thursday afternoon, an elderly woman was rescued and carried down from her third-floor apartment at Balaka Abasan in Mahisbathan, close to New Town, using an aluminium ladder, a fire department official said.
The 87-year-old Gita Rani Ghosh was seated on a bed when the fire started.
She was extricated from the apartment using an aluminium ladder by neighbours who saw the fire and hurried to the third floor.
Parichay Dey, whose apartment faces Ghosh’s, claimed he had informed other neighbours and an electrician who was working in a nearby building, Mohan Pramanik.
The building’s staircase was too narrow to rescue the old woman and bring her down to the ground floor, so Pramanik and a few other residents propped up the aluminium ladder to the balcony of the third-story flat.
After being hauled to the ground, Ghosh complained of being out of breath. She was brought to the hospital in Bidhannagar Subdivision.
Two fire engines were sent to the housing complex after receiving a warning, according to Samiran Basak, station officer of the Sector V fire station.
Six inhabitants, including a two-and-a-half-year-old boy, were found to be hiding on the building’s roof, according to Basak.
“While we were repairing the fire hoses, there was an explosion. After that, the flames became more intense. In order to prevent the fire from spreading, we then sprayed water on other areas of the building.
In less than 30 minutes, the fire was out. Basak said, “It appears the fire originated from a gas burner.” After the fire was put out, the residents who had taken refuge on the roof descended. Sujata Keshri, one of those who sought refuge on the roof, stated, “We were fortunate that the fire did not spread to the roof.
