One killed after fire breaks out at godown complex in Thane
Eight godowns were damaged in the fire which was reported at 4.50 pm on Saturday, the official said, adding that efforts were still on to control the blaze
Amritpal Singh Sanhotra 
An official on Sunday said that one person was killed after a major fire broke out at a godown complex in Maharashtra`s Thane district, reported news agency PTI.
Eight godowns were damaged in the fire which was reported at 4.50 pm on Saturday, he said, adding that efforts were still on to control the blaze.
The fire was suspected to have originated from a chemical storage area at Prerna Complex in Dapodi village of Bhiwandi, and it spread quickly due to the presence of flammable substances, Bhiwandi Nizampur Municipal Corporation`s fire officer Vijay Jadhav said, reported PTI.
Thick plumes of smoke could be seen from far, as per eyewitnesses.
Firefighting teams retrieved the charred body of a man from a godown at night, Jadhav said.
The deceased was yet to be identified, he said, adding the body has been sent to a government hospital for postmortem.
The fire destroyed at least eight godowns, including some storing chemicals and cardboard items, the official said.
Multiple firefighting units from Bhiwandi, Thane, Kalyan, Navi Mumbai, Ulhasnagar and Ambernath civic bodies were present at the site and efforts were still on to douse the blaze, he said, reported PTI.
Several private water tankers were also deployed.
The area has been cordoned off and local police were assisting in diverting the traffic, the official said.
The cause of the fire was under investigation, he added.
Two dead in fire at building in Nagpur`s Mahal area
In another incident, two persons died of suffocation after a fire broke out on the first floor of a residential-cum-commercial building in Mahal area of Nagpur on Saturday evening, a police official said, reported PTI.
The fire started during welding work in a godown created in a first floor flat in the ground-plus-four Jai Kamal Complex near Gandhi Gate, the Kotwali police station official said, reported PTI.
"The blaze spread rapidly due to flammable materials stored in the godown. The deceased have been identified as Girish Khatri, owner of NK Light House, and his worker Vitthal. They died of suffocation. A welder is critically injured and has been hospitalised," he said, reported PTI.
Firefighters managed to rescue several trapped residents, the police official said.
(With inputs from PTI)
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