Why the Kamala Mills mishap won’t be the last of its kind

On the night of 28th December, I was at a friend’s house in Versova for a small reunion held in honour of a much-loved classmate who was visiting from the US. Someone had flown in from Bangalore, I had come from Delhi, other Mumbaikars had crisscrossed the city to be part of a warm evening of laughter and fun. That same night some other groups of people had gathered for the same purpose of reconnecting and celebrating with friends in two restaurants in Lower Parel. That, however, ended with charred bodies, burns and irrecoverable losses. 

As I read the next day’s newspapers full of horrifying stories of an unexplained fire in a swish lounge in Kamala Mills which resulted in 14 deaths due to asphyxiation, I am haunted by how close to the bone this cuts. Three women in their forties who were best friends; a middle-aged mother having a quiet dinner with her twenty year old daughter; a young woman whose husband was throwing her a surprise birthday party with a bunch of friends; two brothers in their twenties who were celebrating the visit of an aunt from the US…any of these people could be any of us or our loved ones. 

The last week of December is a season of reunions and celebrations because of the holiday mood and NRIs visiting home. The venue is often one of the upscale eateries in Delhi’s Khan Market or  Mumbai’s BKC or Lower Parel. As I think of these favourite haunts in my mind, I am reminded of their narrow staircases and small rooms, which are typically described in reviews as “cozy”. If a fire was to occur, we would have a replay of confused staff and panic-stricken guests as in the Kamala Mills accident. 

The fact that such incidents do not happen more often is no indication that it cannot or will not. Disaster management strikes us after the disaster. Fire drills in buildings may be followed by corporates but almost never by commercial establishments like restaurants and malls; especially in the “Shopping complexes”. These are not as spacious as malls but have many small shops cramped together and a chaiwalla brewing tea on each floor with a small gas cylinder. If the rickety stove was to topple or the cylinder burst, the line of shops with dupattas and other inflammables would be gutted in minutes.  They typically also have loose electrical wiring, sometimes illegally connected to a source and hence without proper earthing. Similarly, small roadside eateries with precariously placed gas stoves are potential time bombs that could burst into flames with the slightest trigger.

Fire causes 5.3 per cent of “all accidental deaths due to deliberate or negligent actions of humans” according to the National Crime Records Bureau data of 2015. It resulted in 18,450 deaths in that year, which is the latest data available. Maharashtra itself accounted for 22.5 per cent of such deaths because of being the second most populous state and Mumbai being full of multi-storeyed constructions. According to another survey of FICCI in 2013, the hospitality industry takes second place in the type of industry where fire accidents occur. A majority of them are caused by electric defaults. An old report analysing causes of fire accidents in India between 1957-1967, that I came across, laments that almost 75 per cent of causes have been clubbed under “others” and there is no knowledge of reasons other than a short circuit, bursting of gas stoves and fireworks. Many decades later, we are not better enlightened, despite new possible sources emerging like bartender tricks in restaurants or hookah embers. 
Both these were suspected causes in the Kamala Mills incident. Far more understanding is required about potential sources of fire accidents in modern urban contexts. 

The are some consolations. The number of fire accidents has been falling since 2010. Secondly, out of all unnatural accidental deaths that occurred in 2015, 53 per cent happened due to traffic accidents and 5.3 per cent due to fire accidents. So, if it makes us feel any better, a person in India is ten times more likely to die on the road than due to fire inside a building.

From the Mumbai tragedy, I can see three things that we as a society can collectively implement, to help reduce the risk of such instances recurring. Firstly, restaurant reviews should necessarily talk about the fire safety readiness of an eatery and allot ratings just as they do for cuisine and ambience. All the mastery of chefs, the mood lighting, the best drinks in town and the latest international track playing in the background must not compensate for the disregard for safety of the diners. Restaurants, on their part, need to prominently display signs that they are fire safety compliant. And as customers need to look for this sign before we take our seats and ask the staff what is the establishment’s fire safety plan. Public pressure and restaurant ratings can together be effective ways to bring the safety aspect to the fore. Else, more such articles will be written after the next tragedy amid temporary chest-beating.

Vasudevan is the author of the book Urban Villager: Life in an Indian satellite town