A huge fire that broke out at a motel in West Bengal, eastern India, claimed the lives of at least 14 people, including two children.
The flames, which started at the Rituraj Hotel in Kolkata city on Tuesday night, even seriously wounded two other guests.
Officials claim they are also conducting rescue operations despite the fact that the fire is now under control.
How the flames started is still unclear. A special research team has been established by the police to investigate the incident.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated on X that he was “anguished by the loss of life” and that he had provided monetary compensation to the patients ‘ individuals.
Fatal fires are frequently reported in buildings in American cities, with bad planning and weak safety enforcement playing a role.
At least 27 individuals died in a large fire at a game arcade in Gujarat next year.
In Uttar Pradesh condition, ten newborns were killed after a fire broke out in a hospital’s neonatal system in the Jhansi district.
According to reports in Kolkata, guests at the resort allegedly flocked to the hotel roof and used their phone’s lamps to call for assistance. People are seen escaping the fire by climbing onto cliffs outside their area windows in videos.
According to the Indian Express newspaper, firefighters used mechanical ladders to save those trapped on the ledges. According to authorities, the majority of the victims were friends who couldn’t get out of their apartments.
The unique research team will examine the challenges hotel guests faced in evacuating, according to Manoj Kumar Verma, the police chief in Kolkata.
Sashi Panja, the country’s social security minister, described the incident as an “unfortunate event.”
She told investigators,” The fire brigade tried to save all the citizens, but some of them however passed away due to suffocation.” ” Two children were killed in particular.”
Sukanta Majumdar, a young federal minister and leader of West Bengal’s Bharatiya Janata Party, has criticized the state authorities and demanded” stricter checking” of fire safety measures to stop tragedies like this in the future.