A deadly hotel fire has killed at least 14 people. Sadly, two of the victims were children. The hotel fire happened in India on Tuesday, April 29.
Senior police officer Manoj Kumar Verma confirmed to CBS News that a deadly fire broke out at the Rituraj Hotel in central Kolkata. The fire began at 7:30 p.m. local time. Sadly, it took firefighters a while to fight the blaze. It turned out to be difficult to get under control. In fact, it took more than eight hours to finally get the blaze under control.
Going into Wednesday, authorities were still sifting through the remains of the hotel and trying to rescue survivors. It took six fire trucks to put out the blaze. There were 88 people staying in 42 rooms of the hotel when the fire occurred.
Authorities confirmed that 10 men, one woman, a 10-year-old girl and a 3-year-old girl perished in a resulting fire. Meanwhile, one person tried to escape the inferno. Rather than be consumed by the flames, they opted to jump from the hotel. Sadly, it appears they were on one of the upper floors and plummeted to their deaths.
Deadly Hotel Fire
Authorities are doing the difficult and grisly work of identifying the victims. They've begun contacting families as well. Additionally, several people were taken to the hospital from suspected smoke inhalation. These people fell ill after escaping the fire.
At this time, authorities aren't sure what caused the fire. But they are investigating for arson and other possible causes. Authorities promised swift action if any person was responsible for the deadly hotel fire. But those findings will come in the days to come.
"Police will take action against any person or persons found guilty of negligence," Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim told reporters.
"The entire building was covered with glass. There was no outlet for the fire and smoke which suffocated the guests. The heavy glass panes had to be broken for the firefighters to enter. Action will be taken against the owners," he said.
