NEW DELHI: A fire broke out in a timber shop on the outskirts of the Indian financial capital of Mumbai early Saturday, burning eight people to death, police said.

The victims were workers who were sleeping in the shop, located in the Bhiwandi area of western Maharashtra state, said police officer Ramesh Patil.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the fire.

The Press Trust of India news agency said a dozen fire engines took hours to extinguish the blaze, which also spread to some adjacent shops. Three other people sustained burn wounds and were hospitalised, it said.