Residents allege that fire-tenders arrived late on the scene by which time the fire had spread to four shops and a quilt godown in the building. Officials say that the incident occurred when a pakora-seller's stove leaked and the flames that broke out reached a nearby cracker shop due to strong winds. The fire rapidly spread through boxes of crackers and the entire shop was soon ablaze.

Nearby photostat, dry fruit and paan shops also caught fire. The shops are on the ground floor of the building, which also housed a quilt godown and shop on the first and second floor. The deceased Rinkoo, who was the son of photostat shop owner Mahindra, was reportedly trapped inside their shop. However, it has not yet been ascertained whether Rinkoo died of suffocation or burns. The owner of the paan shop, Babaria also suffered burns and has been admitted to Ram Manohar Lohia hospital.