Hyderabad: A swift, high-stakes operation by fire services personnel saved 50 lives, including 16 children, after a blaze tore through a residential block in Mailardevpally on Sunday.
The fire broke out in a four-storey (G+3) building in Uddamgadda. As smoke and flames surged from the lower floors, residents scrambled to the terrace, cut off by the thick fumes choking the stairways.
Teams from Chandrayangutta fire station reached the spot within minutes of the emergency call. Using ladders and breaking into stairwells, firefighters managed to bring down all the stranded residents safely.
The operation lasted about an hour and a half. The blaze was fully extinguished within 90 minutes.