New Delhi

At least nine members of a family, including three young children and a 70-year-old woman, were killed after a massive fire swept through a multi-storey residential building in Palam on Wednesday morning, officials said.

The blaze broke out at a building near Ram Chowk Market, close to the Delhi Metro station in the area. The structure housed a cloth and cosmetic showroom on the lower floors, while the family resided on the upper levels.

According to officials, the fire spread rapidly—possibly fuelled by highly flammable materials such as perfumes and cosmetic products stored in the shop. Thick smoke quickly engulfed the building, trapping residents inside.

Among those killed were Lado (70), her sons Pravesh (33) and Kamal (39), Kamal’s wife Ashu (35), their three daughters aged 15, six and three, as well as Himanshi (22) and Deepika (28).

Three others were injured in desperate attempts to escape. One man reportedly dropped his two-year-old daughter to a lower floor before jumping himself, while another individual leapt to a neighbouring building. The injured have been admitted to hospital, including at Safdarjung Hospital.

Emergency services mounted a large-scale rescue operation, deploying around 30 fire tenders, along with ambulances and personnel from multiple agencies including police and disaster response teams. Firefighters battled dense smoke and narrow access lanes to evacuate those trapped.

The fire was brought under control by around 2:20 pm, after which cooling operations began. The area has been sealed, and a forensic team is examining the site.

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While the exact cause of the blaze is yet to be determined, initial suspicions point to either a short circuit or the presence of flammable materials accelerating the spread.