Local residents, traders and labourers rushed into action when a fire engulfed the Flourish Stay Bed and Breakfast on Wednesday, using ropes, mattresses, bricks and bare hands to rescue trapped guests before emergency teams fully gained control of the scene, The Times of India reported.
Witnesses said Mansur and Kapil were among the first to break windows with bricks after spotting people trapped behind smoke-filled glass panes, with no balconies for escape. Ropes were then thrown through the shattered windows to help occupants climb down from the burning building. “We could see hands banging against the glass… we realised they were trapped,” Mansur said.
Inside the building, Salauddin and Israr Khan entered after firefighters forced open the main entrance and moved floor to floor to pull out trapped guests. “The heat inside was unbearable. We carried out whoever we found,” Salauddin said, adding that several doors had to be forced open in near-zero visibility.
Outside, Riyazuddin, a mattress shop owner, along with Arman and Mohammad Shahrukh, quickly brought out mattresses and bedsheets, laying them on the road to cushion jumps from upper floors. “We just kept bringing mattresses and helping people jump,” Shahrukh said.
Rakesh Kumar and others climbed nearby rooftops and terraces, throwing ropes toward upper floors to help trapped occupants escape as smoke filled the structure. “We broke windows to release smoke and heat and threw ropes from the terrace,” he said.
At least 10 people, including women and children, were reported to have jumped onto mattresses to escape the blaze. Several rescuers suffered smoke inhalation and minor injuries but continued assisting until firefighters and police brought the fire under control.
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