An ambulance at the accident site
Hyderabad: A six member interdisciplinary team has been formed to probe the fire accident that took place at Gulzar Houz in the Old City on Sunday, May 18.
The committee comprises GHMC commissioner RV Karnan, Hyderabad collector Anudeep Durashetti, Hyderabad commissioner of police CV Anand, Director General of the Fire Department Nagi Reddy, Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency Commissioner AV Ranganath and Telangana Southern Power Distribution Cooperation, Managing Director Musharraf.
Telangana transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar, who is in charge of the committee, has sought a comprehensive inquiry at the field level regarding the fire accident at Gulzar Houz which killed 17 members of a family.
A report detailing measures taken by each department regarding the fire accident will be submitted to Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy. Prabhakar further said that the report must contain suggestions for people at the field level to prevent such fire accidents in the future, assess the local conditions and make suggestions.
Based on the report, the chief minister will conduct a review of fire safety measures.
A massive fire broke out early Sunday morning, May 18, at Gulzar House near Charminar, claiming 17 lives and injuring around 10 others. The victims have been identified as Prahlad,70, Munni, 70, Rajendar Modi,65, Sumitra,60, Hamey,7, Abhishek, 31, Sheetal,35, Priyansh,4, Iraaj,2, Arushi,3, Rishabh,4, Pratham,1.5, Anuyan,3, Varsha, 35, Pankaj,36, Rajini, 32 and Iddu, 4.
According to reports, the fire erupted around 6 am at the Srikrishna Pearls building. Thick smoke quickly filled the premises, causing several people to lose consciousness. About 30 individuals were inside at the time, including the family of a pearl trader and his employees.
Upon receiving the alert, eleven fire tenders rushed to the scene to battle the blaze. Firefighters successfully rescued several people trapped inside the ground-plus-one building, located in a narrow, congested lane within a bustling commercial area.
Injured have been admitted to Osmania, Yashoda Malakpet, Apollo DRDO and Apollo Hyderguda hospitals.
When the Moghalpura fire station arrived at the scene, they immediately recognised the severity of the situation and called for additional support, leading to the deployment of twelve fire tenders. In total, eleven vehicles, 17 fire officers, and 70 personnel battled the fierce blaze engulfing the building.
Despite their efforts, the fire showed no signs of abating, and time was running out. To accelerate the rescue operation, the Telangana State Disaster Response and Fire Services deployed advanced technology, including a fire robot and a Bronto Skylift hydraulic platform.
After nearly a two-hour battle, the fire finally came under control.
Telangana State Disaster Response and Fire Services Director General Y Nagi Reddy, who inspected the spot, told reporters that preliminary investigations reveal a short circuit as the cause of the fire accident.
This post was last modified on May 20, 2025 1:38 pm