KOLKATA: Horrified guests of a Kolkata hotel, who were rescued from a devastating blaze that claimed nine lives in the early hours of Wednesday, recounted a night of terror.Dark smoke engulfed the second and third floors of the dilapidated building, leaving those stranded with little hope of escape, news agency PTI reported.Many survivors alleged that the establishment had no fire alarm or adequate safety equipment in place.Nine people, including a four-year-old child and two women, were killed in the fire at the cramped central Kolkata building that housed several hotels.Prompt action by fire brigade personnel saved around 80 lives, West Bengal fire and emergency services department minister Kaushik Chowdhury said.A resident from Bangladesh, who was staying at the hotel, claimed that he approached the staff, who were fast asleep when the blaze broke out around 2am, PTI reported.“Dark smoke engulfed the second and third floors of the building, and it was hard to escape, as the fire was raging near the staircase,” said the man, who was dressed in a vest and lungi that he had worn when he went to bed.The Bangladeshi national said he could not salvage any of his belongings as he had to scramble to safety.Ejaz Ahmed, a Birbhum resident who checked into the hotel on Tuesday evening, thanked the fire brigade personnel for saving his life.“I was helped by two fire brigade officials in coming down from the upper floors and out of the building to safety, as I was trying to find my way out in the darkness,” Ahmed said.A local resident described the situation as horrific, saying people trapped inside the building kept crying for help.“It was like a scene from a horror movie,” he said.He claimed there was only one entrance to the hotel, which led to the staircase, making the situation worse.Meena Devi, a resident of a flat on an upper floor of the affected building, alleged that there were no fire safety arrangements on the premises.“We were brought out by the fire brigade personnel and the staff of one of the several hotels operating from the building, amid dense smoke,” she said.
What made the fire deadly?
The fire broke out at around 1.45am in the five-storey building on Mirza Ghalib Street. Several hotels and guest houses were operating from the premises.Fire department minister Kaushik Chowdhury said a short circuit could have triggered the blaze, though a forensic examination would establish the exact cause.He also said the building management had allegedly failed to comply with basic safety and construction norms.While the intensity of the flames was reportedly not very high, thick black smoke spread through the building and caused severe breathing difficulties.Fire officials pointed to ventilation failures as a major concern.Each floor housed a hotel or guest house, with small rooms, narrow passages and difficult escape routes. The fire reportedly began at a hotel on the third floor, after which smoke gradually filled the entire building.Firefighters also faced difficulty reaching the upper floors because dense smoke had filled the staircase.An investigation is underway to determine the circumstances of the fire and whether safety regulations were violated.The hotel blaze on Wednesday came days after another fire at a hotel in Tarapith in Birbhum district, which claimed the lives of nine people.(With agency inputs)
