Nearly 27 hours after fire engulfed a six-storey commercial complex in Minister Road in Secunderabad, the Fire Services Department deployed a drone to help look for three people who had gone missing. The fire which started at around 11am on Thursday, January 19 was doused after nearly 24 hours. However, three people were feared to be dead inside the building.
When TNM visited the accident site, the officials were using a camera drone to look for traces of the missing people. According to officials, the decision to deploy the drone was used as it was unsafe for people to enter the building as its structural stability had been compromised. Each time the drone went into the building and later exited after recording the visuals, it had to be brought down and allowed to cool down. Though the fire had been doused, the structure was still emanating heat from the embers of the flames
According to officials, the first three floors of the building housed a textiles showroom, which is why it took longer to douse the fire. Nearly 20 fire tenders were rushed in to control the fire. “We have been told that three people went inside to bring out a few bags. We haven’t found their trace. The building seems like it may collapse at any time. It is not advisable for rescue personnel to enter. There was no visibility from outside, so the drone was used," Ramgopalpet Inspector of Police G Lingeshwar Rao told TNM.