Lucknow: Four people died and 10 were injured after a fire broke out in a four-floor hotel in the city’s commercial centre Hazratganj on Monday morning, police said.
Rescue teams were inspecting the premises of the Levana Suites on Madan Mohan Malviya Marg in Hazratganj to check if someone had been trapped, officials said.
Initially, 10 people were rushed to Shyama Prasad Mukherjee civil hospital. Of these, two were declared dead and seven are undergoing treatment. One of the injured was released, they said.
Officials said two more people were later rushed to the civil hospital, and were declared dead, taking the toll to four.
“Two more people who were found in a serious condition during the room-to-room search of the hotel were rushed to the civil hospital. They were declared brought dead by doctors,” Joint Commissioner of Police, Law and Order, Piyush Mordia, told PTI.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visited the injured in the hospital and enquired about their health. He also ordered a joint probe by the Commissioner, Lucknow division, and police commissioner of Lucknow into the incident.
He directed officials to provide free and appropriate treatment to the injured.
The fire, which led to panic in the area, broke out at about 7am, eyewitnesses said, after which the entire hotel was engulfed in flames and smoke.
Crowds gathered as evacuation efforts got under way. Fire teams had a tough time dousing the flames after breaking glass panes.
The rescue teams also used bulldozers to break a wall on the first floor to help in the firefighting. Both NDRF and SDRF teams were also pressed for the rescue operation.
“Fire teams are on the job and many people were taken out of the hotel and have been rushed to the hospital,” District Magistrate Suryapal Gangwar told reporters.
“According to the hotel owner, there are 30 rooms in the building and 18 were occupied at the time. There were 35-40 people there and some had left the hotel in the morning,” he said.
He said the fire could have been caused by a short circuit and the exact cause is being ascertained.
“The hotel owner told us that there is a banquet on the first floor where something happened,” Gangwar said.
The hotel also has a rooftop bar, visitors said.
The injured included fireman Chandresh Yadav, who sustained burns while rescuing people.
Ujjawal, who was staying on the second floor of the hotel, said fire broke out at around 7am and he saw smoke in his room.
“When I came out, I along with others tried to go out, but thick smoke engulfed the entire floor. I could not see anything due to the smoke. Then we reached the third floor and broke a window to come out and were rescued,” he said.
“I fear many are still trapped and there is no way out,” he added.
Another guest on the same floor said there were no firefighting arrangements in the hotel due to which they got trapped.
Shyam, a caretaker of a nearby building, said he was the first to see the smoke emanating out of the hotel and informed the fire brigade team.
“I myself broke several window panes and reached up with the help of iron angles and saved a few people with the help of others,” he said.
Lucknow MP and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh took cognisance of the incident.
“I came to know about the tragic incident of a fire in a hotel in Lucknow. I have enquired about the situation from the local administration. Relief and rescue operations are on. My office is in constant touch with the local administration. I pray to God for the speedy recovery of those injured in the incident,” Singh said in a tweet.
Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak said strict action would be taken against the guilty.
“We will also see that there is no recurrence of such incidents. And for this, directives will be issued for the entire state,” he said.
Pathak, who also holds the health portfolio, said an advisory would be issued for proper fire safety service arrangements in all public establishments.