Kolkata: Nine people, including a child, lost their lives after a late-night fire broke out at Hotel Taiba on Free School Street in Kolkata early Tuesday. Six others were injured in the incident, while several guests had to be evacuated from the smoke-filled building.
The fire was reported at around 2 am when most of the occupants were asleep. Thick smoke quickly engulfed parts of the hotel, leaving some guests trapped inside. Rescue teams and police personnel rushed to the spot and began evacuating those inside.
Officials said 28 people were rescued from the premises and taken to different hospitals in Kolkata for medical attention. The deceased included Bangladeshi nationals who were reportedly staying in the city while undergoing or seeking medical treatment. People from Meghalaya and West Bengal’s Alipurduar district were also among those who died.
The exact reason behind the Kolkata hotel fire has not been established so far, and authorities are investigating the circumstances that led to the blaze.
The incident comes shortly after another deadly hotel fire was reported in Birbhum district on August 17. Nine people were killed and nine others suffered critical injuries in the blaze at a hotel near the Tarapith Temple. Initial findings in that case pointed towards a possible short circuit as the cause of the fire.
The back-to-back incidents have raised fresh concerns over fire safety arrangements at hotels and other accommodation facilities across West Bengal.
