The death toll after a fire in a hotel in New Delhi’s congested Karol Bagh area rose to 17 as rescuers looked for survivors on Tuesday, chief fire brigade official said.
Television news channels said a woman and a child were among the dead, who tried to escape by jumping from a window of the hotel located in the busy shopping area of the Capital.
Fire officer Vipin Kenta said the two people had jumped off the Hotel Arpit Palace on Gurudwara Road out of panic when the fire broke out. “There was wood panelling on the corridor because of which people couldn’t use the corridors to get out. The two jumped off the building,” he said.
A wedding party had booked a large part of the 35-room hotel and most of the victims were sleeping when the fire broke out, believed to have been caused by a short circuit.
Delhi Fire Service officials said they received a call at 4:35am about the fire at Hotel Arpit Palace on Gurudwara Road of Karol Bagh area.
According to deputy chief fire officer Sunil Choudhary, 26 fire tenders were rushed to the spot. Choudhary said 25 personnel were evacuated from the hotel and two jumped out of the building in panic.
Last week, a fire broke out in a hospital in Noida, forcing an emergency evacuation of scores of patients and other people. Nobody was injured.
Authorities have launched raids to enforce building regulations, fire safety measures and evacuation procedures but these steps have failed to check rampant violations by builders in a rapidly expanding Capital, the home to more than 18 million people.
However, Delhi Hotel Association vice-president Balan Mani all rules and regulations were followed in the hotel.
“It was due to a fire in ducting because of which it spread to the hotel rooms. All norms were followed here. A license is issued only after inspection. Mishaps can occur in a house as well,” Mani said, according to news agency ANI.