Firefighters battle blaze at New Belgrade shopping mall

Firefighters battled a significant blaze that erupted early Monday morning at the Enjub shopping mall in New Belgrade, Serbia. The fire, which started before dawn, was met with a swift emergency response, allowing crews to contain the flames and prevent them from spreading throughout the entire shopping complex.

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The first crews arrived within four minutes to find the fire already fully involved, with flames already reaching the roof. We cannot say the fire is fully extinguished yet, but it is under control. We stopped it from spreading to the rest of the units; roughly 60 to 70 shops were affected out of about 400 total.

Commander Dragan Mikovic of the Fire and Rescue Brigade reported that the first crews arrived within four minutes of the 5:56 am emergency call to find the fire already intense, with flames reaching the roof. While the fire is not yet fully extinguished, it is under control, and its spread to other sections of the mall has been stopped. Out of approximately 400 shops in the complex, an estimated 60 to 70 were affected by the fire.

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The most important thing is that there were no fatalities or civilian injuries.

Crucially, the operation resulted in no civilian injuries or fatalities. Two firefighters received minor cuts from broken glass, and they were sent for medical checks as a precautionary measure, according to standard procedure. Commander Mikovic stated that the primary focus was on ensuring the safety of personnel and the public. The cause of the fire remains undetermined, though speculation points to potential electrical wiring issues ignited during a storm on Sunday night. Specialized teams from the Internal Affairs Ministry are expected to investigate the origin of the fire once the immediate firefighting efforts are concluded.

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We sent them for medical checks as a precaution because we look out for our personnel, as per standard procedure.