Fire at Mumbai's BKC metro basement, services suspended

A fire broke out in the basement of the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) underground metro station in Mumbai on Friday afternoon, prompting the authorities to suspend the train services there, officials said.

No injuries were reported in the blaze that erupted around 1.10 pm. It was confined to wooden sheets, furniture and construction material at a depth of 40-50 feet of the station located in Bandra East, causing heavy smoke in the area, they said.

"There is no report of injury to anyone," a civic official said.

Eight fire engines and other fire brigade vehicles were rushed to the spot and the fire was covered from all sides, he said.

Apart from the personnel of the Mumbai fire brigade, those belonging to the Mumbai police force, Adani Power, 108 Ambulance, Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC), Public Works Department (PWD) and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) local administrative ward, gathered at the spot for the firefighting operation.

Senior officials of the Mumbai fire brigade are also at the spot with a quick response vehicle, he added.

The BKC metro station is part of the 12.69 km-long Phase 1 of the MMRC's Mumbai Metro Line-3 (Aqua Line) connecting BKC and Aarey JVLR. This line was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month.

The MMRC did not issue an official statement about the incident yet, but in a post on its X handle, it said passenger services at BKC station were temporarily closed due to the fire that broke outside the A4 entry-exit.

"Notice: Passenger services at BKC station are temporarily closed due to a fire outside Entry/Exit A4, which caused smoke to enter the station. Fire Brigade is on the job," the post stated.

It also said that for passenger safety, the authorities have paused services and senior officers of the MMRC and DMRC (Delhi Metro Rail Corporation) are at the site. It also appealed to passengers to proceed to the Bandra Colony station for alternative boarding.

On October 21, a fire had broken out on the ground floor of the Mandai metro station in Pune city past midnight, in which nobody was injured.