NOIDA: A massive fire triggered by an electric scooter being charged tore through a residential building in Mamura village of Noida’s Sector 66 on July 15, trapping scores of residents inside and exposing glaring safety lapses in one of the city’s densely populated localities. More than 100 people were rescued in a large-scale operation, while two residents were rushed to hospital after suffering severe smoke inhalation. Authorities have arrested the building owner and leaseholder on charges of negligence.
The blaze erupted in Mamura village, which falls under the jurisdiction of Phase-3 Police Station, after an electric scooter allegedly sparked while being charged in the ground-floor parking area of a G+4 residential building.
According to officials, the spark ignited the electric vehicle before the flames spread rapidly to nearby petrol-powered vehicles, creating an intense fire and thick toxic smoke that engulfed the building within minutes. The smoke quickly travelled upwards through the residential floors, trapping families inside their apartments and triggering panic among residents.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took immediate cognisance of the incident and directed senior officials to rush to the site.
The Chief Minister instructed authorities to intensify relief and rescue operations, ensure proper medical treatment for the injured, maintain strict vigilance throughout the operation, and continuously monitor rescue and relief efforts.
The Chief Minister’s Office stated that officials had been directed to provide every possible medical assistance to those affected by the fire.
Joint Commissioner of Police (Gautam Buddha Nagar) Rajeev Narain said the Fire Services responded immediately after receiving the distress call. Hydraulic platforms, rescue vehicles and seven fire tenders were rushed to the spot to launch an extensive firefighting and evacuation operation.
“The building where the fire broke out is a G+4 structure housing around 50 families. All the residents were safely evacuated. However, two people experienced health complications due to smoke inhalation and were immediately shifted to the district hospital,” Narain said.
He clarified that the building did not have a basement parking area. Instead, vehicles were parked on the ground floor, from where the smoke spread upwards into the residential units. Officials said each floor accommodated nearly five families, with approximately 12 two-room flats on every level, making the rescue operation particularly challenging due to the high occupancy.
Emergency teams carried out door-to-door evacuations while firefighters battled the flames that had spread through multiple parked vehicles.
Police later confirmed that more than 100 residents were rescued from the smoke-filled building.
Providing further details, the DCP (Central Noida) said the fire originated on the first floor area adjoining the parking after an electric scooter that had been plugged in for charging developed a spark. The blaze rapidly engulfed several other vehicles parked nearby, generating massive volumes of smoke that entered the residential apartments on the upper floors.
Police, fire service personnel and rescue teams reached the location within minutes and evacuated all trapped occupants. The two residents who fell unconscious due to smoke inhalation were shifted to hospital by ambulance, and officials said updates on their condition are awaited.
Taking serious note of the incident, police have registered an FIR under relevant legal provisions against the building’s owner, leaseholder and operator for alleged negligence. Both the owner and the leaseholder have been taken into custody, and further legal proceedings are underway.
Officials said preliminary investigations indicate that the fire was accidental and began while the electric vehicle was being charged. However, a detailed forensic examination will determine the exact sequence of events and whether mandatory fire safety norms were violated.
