14 Injured in Fire at 7 Story Building in Mumbai

Thousands of employees were evacuated Thursday from a seven-story government building as more than two dozen fire engines battled a major fire that raged for several hours in India’s financial and entertainment capital.

Fourteen people were injured, and 10 of them were hospitalized, said T. P. Lahane, dean of the state-run J.J. Hospital in southern Mumbai. One person was in critical condition.

Television images showed some people being taken on stretchers as the blaze and the billowing smoke engulfed the Maharashtra state government headquarters from the fourth floor upward. A strong sea breeze fanned the fire, which could be seen for miles.

Firefighters used hydraulic platforms to evacuate trapped people, and two navy helicopters hovered over the building to pick up people from the rooftop.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known.

Some witnesses complained that the firefighters took almost half an hour to reach the site.