At least 14 people, including two children, have died in a massive fire that broke out in a hotel in the central business district of the eastern Indian city of Kolkata. About this informs DW.
Local police said that approximately 20 people were evacuated from the roof of the six-story budget hotel, and some were rescued from narrow ledges on the facade of the building. At the time of the fire, there were about 50 people in the hotel, most of the 45 rooms were occupied. One person died after jumping from the roof of the hotel.
West Bengal State Emergency Services Minister Sujit Bose said most of the dead were found on the stairs and the cause of death was likely asphyxiation. He also noted that a team of forensic medical experts should arrive at the scene of the tragedy on Wednesday. An official investigation has now been scheduled to establish the cause of the fire and find out why the built-in fire extinguishing system failed.
“A forensics team is on the scene today and an investigation has been scheduled to determine the cause of the fire. It will also be determined why the hotel’s built-in fire suppression system failed.” – said Sujit Bose.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.
