Pune Fire Officer Milawane’s Quick Action Saves 15 Trapped in Lift, Prevents Gas Cylinder Disaster

Pune, 9th October 2024: Mangesh Harishchandra Milawane, who has been serving in the Fire Brigade Department for the last fifteen years and as Chief Fire Extinguishing Officer for the past two years at the Fire Brigade Headquarters, is being commended by officers for his brave actions in two incidents that occurred during his day off.

On Tuesday (8th October), Milawane, who was working at the Fire Brigade Headquarters, left at 6 pm for his weekly off. He then picked up his son from school and returned to his residence at Somwar Peth, Narpatgiri Chowk. Upon his arrival, the society’s security guard informed him that nine women and six men were stuck in the lift between the ground floor and the first floor.

Without hesitation, Milawane turned off the main switch, used the elevator key to open the main door, and manually opened the inner mesh door, safely rescuing all fifteen trapped individuals. It was initially observed that the lift had malfunctioned due to overcrowding, exceeding its capacity.

Later, between 7 pm and 7:30 pm on the same day, Milawane received a call from his friend, Nitin Salunkhe, informing him that a gas cylinder had caught fire at a residence in the Pune Station area, Sassoon Quarters. Milawane instructed his friend to take preliminary safety measures and rushed to the scene.

With the assistance of local residents, who poured water on the burning cylinder, the fire was successfully extinguished, preventing a potentially hazardous situation.

Milawane said, “My father was in the Fire Brigade Department too, and he taught me that duty comes first, even on a holiday. Firefighters are always ready and alert.”