BENGALURU: A 40-year-old Samaritan’s quick thinking and presence of mind saved around 30 people, who allegedly got trapped inside a five floor commercial building in J.P. Nagar when a fire broke out in the electrical switch board at the entrance gate on Thursday.
Abdul Kareem, a resident of RBI layout in J P Nagar 7th phase single handedly doused the fire which broke out in the electrical board on the second floor. Kareem, a civil defence personnel, had gone to a dentist to show her seven-year-old child.
Kareem told Deccan Chronicle, “The incident took place at about 11.50 am. I was at a juice shop next to the building. When there was a commotion I rushed and saw that there was a fire. As trained in civil defence, i immediately rushed to the next building and brought fire extinguisher. People had run to the terrace for their safety.”
He continued, “I first called fire and emergency department, police and then went to douse the fire. It took nearly 25 minutes to extinguish the fire completely. And people were made to safely evacuate the building. “
By the time the fire tenders reached the spot, Kareem had doused the fire and averted a tragedy. Though the building had complied to fire safety norms, nobody could access the fire extinguishers as the fire happened at the entrance.
Another eyewitness told Deccan Chronicle that Kareem’s bravery, quick thinking and presence of mind saved the day. He said, “Kareem had gauged the problem and acted swiftly. There were panic-stricken people trapped in the building. Some were even trying to jump to another building. They were advised to remain calm.”
