Massive Fire Destroys Rabale Pharmaceutical Factory; No Casualties Reported

A devastating fire tore through a pharmaceutical and chemical factory in the Rabale MIDC area of Navi Mumbai in the early hours of Friday morning, October 17, 2025. The fire, which began at approximately 2:15 a.m. at the Jell Pharmaceutical plant on Plot No. R-952, quickly escalated into a massive inferno.

According to officials and media reports, the factory’s inventory, which included highly flammable materials such as wax, candles, and chemicals for mosquito repellent, acted as an accelerant. This caused the fire to spread rapidly throughout the entire structure, engulfing the building in flames before emergency services could contain it.

The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) fire services, along with units from the MIDC fire brigade, responded immediately. Fire tenders from Vashi, Kopar Khairane, and Airoli were all dispatched to the scene in a coordinated effort to battle the blaze. Firefighters fought for nearly eight hours to bring the severe fire under control, finally subduing the main flames by 10:00 a.m.

Miraculously, no injuries or casualties were reported. The fire started during the early morning hours when the factory was likely empty, a fortunate circumstance that prevented a potential tragedy.

However, the property damage was extensive. Reports indicate that the entire factory and its machinery were destroyed, resulting in a significant financial loss. Fire brigade officials remained on the scene long after the fire was controlled to conduct “cooling operations”, a necessary step to extinguish any remaining embers and prevent the fire from reigniting from the chemical and wax residue.

The cause of the fire is not yet known. An official investigation is expected to begin to determine what ignited the blaze.