Mumbai: A record number of firecracker accidents erupted across the Mumbai region on Diwali night of Nov 8 — over 380 across MMR, including 137 in Mumbai alone — causing fire officials to scramble from one spot to another, with two major mishaps occurring in Dongri and Vidyavihar in Mumbai and one in Thane. Hours later, municipal corporations of Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai on Monday banned rockets and other aerial firecrackers in their jurisdictions for varying durations — BMC imposed a blanket ban on rockets and aerial fireworks till Nov 25, and Thane and Navi Mumbai for two months till Jan 8, 2027.
Local Congress MLA Amin Patel alleged, “There are three fire stations within a three-to-five-minute distance, yet the first fire engine reportedly took 45 minutes to arrive. By then, 500 industrial units were gutted. Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) echoed the ban on ‘flying firecrackers’ till Jan 8, 2027, said municipal commissioner and city disaster management committee chairman Kailas Shinde. In Navi Mumbai, 62 fires broke out over two days of Diwali, thankfully causing no casualties or injuries, said an NMMC disaster management official. Vashi received the highest number of complaints at 18, followed by Nerul with 14. A rocket entered a house 300 m from Airoli fire station, and another cracker landed on an SUV, causing a scuffle among residents. Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) fire department reported 70 fire mishaps, 68 related to crackers.
Local BJP MLA Parag Shah said offices were shut but a police patrol suspected that a firecracker from outside may have triggered the blaze. We were told that they were overwhelmed by the number of fire incidents in their jurisdiction,” said a resident. Chief fire officer Chaudhary said most fires were caused by rockets that landed on balconies of buildings where clothes, paper or other combustible materials were kept.
In Vidyavihar, three upper floors of Skyline Epitome, a commercial building, were burnt to cinders, including the office of architect Manoj Daisaria. In Dongri, multiple garages, garment and footwear stores were gutted in a fierce fire. A rocket landed in the bathroom duct of a 20th-floor flat in Hiranandani Gardens, Powai. A family member spotted the rocket and immediately alerted other residents. “The police rushed over, but the fire brigade could not reach the building. It was Hiranandani’s security commandos who doused the fire. In an unprecedented initiative, the municipal corporations of Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai banned aerial firecrackers for varying durations. Many fires were caused by children bursting crackers without supervision. Kalyan police registered a case against a hotel owner and five to six employees for allegedly bursting firecrackers on a public road. Some fell on garbage.