A tragic fire in a multi-storey residential-cum-commercial building in Kanpur Nagar district, Uttar Pradesh, claimed the lives of five members of a single family early Monday, authorities confirmed.

The blaze, which erupted late Sunday night in the Chaman Ganj area, approximately 93 kilometers west of Lucknow, rapidly engulfed the five-storey structure, trapping residents.

The victims, a couple and their three minor daughters, were unable to escape as flames consumed their apartment. The building housed residential units alongside small-scale shoe manufacturing operations on its first and second floors, according to officials.

Senior Police Officer Manjay Singh stated, “Initial investigations suggest a short circuit or faulty internal wiring, likely from the shoe manufacturing floors, may have sparked the fire.” The situation worsened when multiple domestic liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders stored in the building exploded, intensifying the blaze and complicating rescue efforts.

Firefighters battled the inferno, but the fire’s intensity delayed containment. Authorities have launched a thorough investigation and pledged to inspect safety compliance in similar mixed-use buildings across the region.

The incident underscores ongoing concerns about fire safety in India’s densely populated urban areas, where mixed-use structures often lack adequate infrastructure and regulatory oversight. (ILKHA)