New Delhi Battery Factory Fire Kills 1

Firemen try to douse fire after a factory caught fire and collapsed in the Peera Garhi area in western New Delhi, India, Thursday, January 2.

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READ MORE: A factory manufacturing batteries in the Indian capital caught fire and collapsed Thursday, killing one firefighter and injuring 19 others, officials said.

A fire official said three people were rescued from the debris of the building in the Peera Garhi area in western New Delhi. Thirty-five fire engines were rushed to the site and it took them more than 10 hours to douse the blaze.

Arvind Kejriwal, New Delhi state's top elected official, said in a tweet that one of the injured firefighters had died.

The fire service control room said that 18 firefighters were injured in the operation and one of them later died in a hospital. One security guard also was injured in the fire, which broke out in the basement of the building.

Poor safety standards are a frequent cause of fires in India. Last month, a fire believed to be caused by an electrical short circuit engulfed a building in New Delhi, killing at least 43 people.

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LINK: https://www.voanews.com/south-central-asia/new-delhi-battery-factory-fire-kills-1-0