Hyderabad: People who have had fire accidents in the past recalled painful memories of the tragedy after watching the visual effects of the Gulzar Houz fire accident, which reminded them of their escape from the range of death. Many survivors say they have received no compensation from the government despite the promise.
These include Manikyala Padma. On April 18, 2024, it has spread to her home in a building in the timber warehouse in the Kushaguda Senagar colony. “We don’t understand what happened when the flames entered our home on the second floor. My husband and son tied their clothes and climbed down. I immediately ran to the first floor and jumped up.” Padma suffered injuries to his face and right arm and lasted in the ICU for a week.
Her family received no help from the government, who promised to pay for the hospital. “Looking at the fire in Gulzar Houz feels like a nightmare recovery. If we postponed for five minutes, we will be trapped. The incident still bothered me. By the time the fire department arrived, the damage had been done and people had been killed. Although we were still living in the same colony, I would never walk near my home,” she said.
“I’m 15 and we’re on the first floor. We escaped the stairs,” Raghav Nadda, who survived the Red Hills fire on November 12, 2023. His family later moved out of the house. The fire exploded from chemicals stored on the first floor. He said: “I was shocked to see the incident of Gulzar Houz. Even though I was too young when my accident happened, it reminded me of our tragedy.”
Several survivors said they received no compensation for their losses. Many people moved elsewhere, recovered from trauma, and escaped from painful memories.
Other survivors of Red Mountain unfortunately shared similar experiences. “We are lucky to survive. I drove through the window with the help of a fire department ladder on the first floor, while my family (six adults and six children) used the stairs with the help of the fire officer, and Mirza Yousuf Baig, 75, rode the stairs. One should have to go through this experience.”
Anjamma Gurumurthy, the apartment’s caretaker, said that after the incident, everyone was afraid to leave the building. “The fire started from the chemical barrel at the bottom. We immediately reminded everyone and escaped. But the smoke spread to the upper layer, causing death.” After the incident, she added that each layer was equipped with fire extinguishers.
Khaleed, who lost eight members of his uncle’s family, said: “Even after nearly two years, we have never received any help from the government. Every time an incident like Gulzar Houz occurs, they declare compensation (only this moment) and then make people run. We suffer huge losses. We suffer losses of up to Rs 15 crore, including valuable items.”
