Fire Accident

Toll hits 21 in Bengal fire, 28 still missing; prohibitory orders imposed

The toll in the fire near Kolkata on January 26 has risen to 21 with more 13 bodies found from gutted buildings, while 28 people are still missing, raising fears that the number of fatalities are likely to increase, the police said on Thursday. The authorities imposed prohibitory orders in the area, restricting public movement ahead of the proposed visit by Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari and other BJP leaders. The devastating fire reduced to ashes two godowns and a manufacturing unit of a momo company at Anandapur in South 24 Parganas district, close to the city. "Given the nature of the incident and the extent of damage, the possibility of the toll going up cannot be ruled out," a senior police officer said. In view of the situation and ahead of a proposed visit by BJP leaders, prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita were imposed in the area from Wednesday midnight. "A prohibitory order has been imposed to maintain law and order and to ...

Wow! Momo announces compensation after 3 die in Kolkata warehouse fire

Three dead in Wow! Momo warehouse fire in Kolkata; company announces compensation for families, fire reportedly spread from neighbouring premises

Kolkata fire: Factory owner held; ₹10 lakh ex-gratia for victims' families

Police on Tuesday evening arrested the owner of the momo manufacturing unit and godown gutted in a devastating fire in South 24 Parganas district in which eight people were killed, a senior officer said. The owner, Gangadhar Das, was arrested from the Garia area of Kolkata and will be produced before a Baruipur court on Wednesday, police said, adding that he had been evading arrest since the incident. The West Bengal government will give an ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh each for the families of those killed in the blaze, said Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim. The compensation will be handed over once the bodies or body parts are identified, Hakim said, adding that permission would be sought from a court on Wednesday to conduct DNA tests. "Gangadhar Das has been arrested and will be produced before the court tomorrow. The investigation is continuing, and all angles are being examined," the officer said. Earlier, an FIR was lodged against Das in connection with the fire that broke

Goa nightclub fire: Ex-sarpanch surrenders after dismissal of bail plea

A former sarpanch of Goa's Arpora village, who occupied the post when a fire at the 'Birch by Romeo Lane' nightclub killed 25 persons last year, surrendered before a local court on Thursday. Roshan Redkar surrendered before the Judicial Magistrate First Class in Mapusa, a day after the Goa Bench of Bombay High Court dismissed his anticipatory bail application. The former sarpanch of Arpora-Nagoa panchayat was booked by the Anjuna police along with others, including Panchayat secretary Raghuvir Bagkar, for allegedly facilitating licences for the nightclub. Redkar first approached the Additional District Court in Mapusa seeking pre-arrest bail, but the court rejected his plea. He then challenged the order in the high court, which also denied him relief. The Directorate of Panchayat has already disqualified Redkar from the post of sarpanch after he was named in the FIR by the Goa police, said officials. Police have also arrested Bagkar, who is accused of colluding with the Redkar to .

Nightclub where fire killed 25 flagged for illegal construction: Goa govt

The Goa government has told the legislative assembly that the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub, where 25 persons died in a fire last month, had been flagged for illegal construction by revenue officials in 2024. Twenty-five persons were killed last month in a fire at the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub, located at Arpora in North Goa. State Revenue Minister Atanasio Monserratte, in a written reply to the House on Friday, attached documents that show the club was constructed by demolishing the traditional sluice gate inside the salt pan by illegally converting the land. The original owners of the property, Pradeep Ghadi Amonkar and Sunil Divkar, had filed a complaint before the Bardez taluka mamlatdar (revenue officer) on December 21, 2023. The complaint was filed against the then Maizon Lake View Resort (later named as the Birch by Romeo Lane after it was leased out to brothers Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra). The complainants had signed an agreement for sale with Surinder Khosla, the ...

At least 40 dead, 115 injured in massive fire at Swiss Alpine resort

About 40 people were killed and another 115 injured, most of them seriously, after a fire ripped through a bar's New Year celebration in a Swiss Alpine resort less than two hours after midnight Thursday, police said. Authorities did not immediately have an exact count of the deceased. The Crans-Montana resort is best known as an international ski and golf venue, and overnight, its crowded Le Constellation bar morphed from a scene of revelry into the site of potentially one of Switzerland's worst tragedies. Valais Canton police commander Frederic Gisler said during a news conference that work is underway to identify the victims and inform their families, adding that the community is devastated. Beatrice Pilloud, Valais Canton attorney general, said it was too early to determine the cause of the fire. Experts have not yet been able to go inside the wreckage. At no moment is there a question of any kind of attack, Pilloud said. Axel Clavier, a 16-year-old from Paris who survived the

Several dead in fire at ski resort in Switzerland on New Year's Eve

Several people were killed and many injured after a fire broke out at a crowded bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana during New Year's celebrations

Arpora sarpanch disqualified, panchayat secy sacked over Goa nightclub fire

The sarpanch of Arpora-Nagoa village was disqualified, and the then secretary of the local panchayat was dismissed from service by the Goa government on Wednesday after they were indicted in a magisterial inquiry committee report on a nightclub fire that killed 25 people. In two different orders, Director of Panchayat, Mahadev Araundekar, disqualified the sarpanch of Arpora-Nagoa, Roshan Redkar, and dismissed the then panchayat secretary Raghuvir Bagkar from government service. Based on the findings of the magisterial inquiry report released earlier in the day, Araundekar termed Redkar's conduct as "persistent remiss of duties." "The breach of the public trust resulted in a catastrophe, causing the death of 25 people," stated the order, passed under section 50(5) of the Goa Panchayati Raj Act. Redkar is removed from membership of the panchayat and debarred from holding any office in a panchayat for five years. The order regarding the dismissal of the then secretary of Arpora-Nagoa

Fire at Indonesian retirement home kills 16 elderly residents, 15 survive

A fire at an Indonesian retirement home killed 16 older people on Sunday evening, police said. The fire in the single-story house in Manado, Indonesia's North Sulawesi Province, started while the residents were asleep, police said Monday. The team on the ground has confirmed that the death toll currently is 16," North Sulawesi police spokesperson Alamsyah Hasibuan said. "Fifteen of them were burned to death, while one victim's body remains intact." There were 15 survivors who were treated at two hospitals in Manado, Hasibuan said. The bodies of victims were taken to a hospital for identification with the assistance of families, officials said. Firefighters with six trucks needed more than two hours to extinguish the blaze after nearby residents reported the fire to emergency services, officials said. Television reports Sunday showed bright flames casting an orange glow and filling the night air with smoke. Body bags were lined up outside the retirement home. Neighbours reportedl

1 killed as Tatanagar-Ernakulam Express train catches fire in Andhra

A man was killed after two compartments of the Tatanagar-Ernakulam Express caught fire at Yalamanchili, about 66 km from here, a senior police official said on Monday. The official said they received information about the fire at 12:45 am. The official told reporters that there were 82 passengers in one of the affected coaches and 76 in another when the train caught fire. "Unfortunately, a dead body was found from the B1 coach," the official added. The deceased was identified as Chandrsekhar Sundaram. The two damaged coaches were detached from the train, which proceeded towards Ernakulam. The passengers in the damaged coaches will be sent to their destinations. Two forensic teams are working to ascertain the cause of the fire, the police official said.

Goa nightclub fire: Co-owner Ajay Gupta files bail plea in Mapusa court

Ajay Gupta, one of the four co-owners of 'Birch by Romeo Lane' nightclub in Goa, where 25 persons were killed in a fire earlier this month, on Thursday filed a bail application in a court in Mapusa town. Gupta was arrested in New Delhi by the Goa Police on December 10, following which a court in Mapusa remanded him in police custody for seven days. Twenty-five persons, including 20 staff members and five tourists, were killed in the major blaze at the nightclub at Arpora in North Goa around midnight of December 6. Gupta, who is currently in the custody of the Anjuna police, applied for bail before the District Judge in Mapusa. Senior lawyer Rohan Desai will represent him. The court is likely to hear the bail application later in the day, and notices will be issued to the state police seeking their response. So far, eight persons have been arrested in connection with the case, including Gupta, and two other owners - Gaurav Luthra and his brother Saurabh - who were deported from ...

Nightclub fire: Luthra brothers taken to Goa after court grants remand

The Luthra brothers were brought to Delhi earlier on Tuesday after being deported from Thailand, where they had allegedly fled following a deadly fire at their nightclub

Goa nightclub fire: Luthra brothers land in Delhi, to be presented in court

The Luthra brothers, who landed in the national capital today, will be produced before the Patiala House Court, and the officials will be seeking their transit remand, a media report suggested

Goa officials seal popular restaurant 'The Cape Goa' over safety violations

Authorities have sealed 'The Cape Goa', a prominent restaurant located on a cliff in South Goa district, for violation of fire and other safety norms, officials said on Tuesday. The Tourism Department had granted permission for one temporary private shack, but it was observed that the establishment was operating a full-fledged restaurant beyond the sanctioned plinth area, according to the sealing order issued on Monday. Continued operation of the premises without mandatory safety clearances poses an imminent, grave and real threat to human life and property, particularly in the event of fire, electrical short-circuit, structural failure, or any emergency requiring evacuation, it said. The action comes after a massive fire at a nightclub in Arporal, North Goa, on December 6 claimed 25 lives. Chairperson of the joint enforcement and monitoring committee, Canacona taluka, Maya Pednekar, on Monday issued the order to seal 'The Cape Goa', located on a cliff at Cabo de Rama Fort in Kuddi

Goa nightclub fire: Probe committee questions landowner, sarpanch

A magisterial inquiry committee has questioned original landowner Pradeep Ghadi Amonkar and Arpora-Nagoa sarpanch Roshan Redkar in connection with the devastating fire at the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub in North Goa. Amonkar was summoned at 3.30 pm on Saturday and questioned till 10.30 pm, his lawyer Prasenjeet Dhage said, adding that the panel wanted to know "why this incident happened". "My client had a warrant of appearance before the committee," he said. "It was a very intensive and vigorous inquiry," the lawyer added. The Goa government has constituted a committee headed by district magistrate Ankit Yadav to inquire into the December 6 fire incident which claimed 25 lives. Arpora-Nagoa panchayat sarpanch Roshan Redkar told reporters that he answered the committee's questions. He has already obtained pre-arrest bail from a local court in connection with the case. The Goa police have arrested five managers and staff members of the club. Gaurav Luthra and Saurabh Luthra, co

Massive fire breaks out in 12-storey building in Dhaka market, 42 rescued

A massive fire broke out early Saturday on the ground floor of a 12-storey mixed-use building in a market in Bangladesh's capital city, officials said. However, no casualties were reported in the blaze at Jabal E Nur Tower, and fire service officials rescued at least 42 people from the building, the state-run BSS news agency reported. The incident marks the second major fire in a multi-storey building in Dhaka in two months. On October 14, a massive blaze ripped through a chemical warehouse and an adjacent garments factory in the capital, killing at least 16 people. According to news portal tbsnews.net, the Fire Service and Civil Defence received information about the blaze at 5:37 am local time and firefighting units reached the scene at around 5:45 am. Fire service media officer Anwarul Islam said 18 firefighting units were deployed to bring the blaze under control. Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel were also deployed at the site to assist in maintaining law and order, ...

Goa nightclub fire: Luthra brothers held in Thailand, deportation begins

Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra, linked to Goa's Birch by Romeo Lane club, where a fire killed 25 people, have been detained in Thailand as India begins deportation efforts

Who are the Luthra brothers behind Goa's nightclub where 25 people died?

After 25 people died in the December 6 fire at Goa's Birch by Romeo Lane, reports have put owners Gaurav and Saurabh Luthra in focus, alongside documents citing notices over illegal construction

Goa police detain nightclub co-owner Ajay Gupta over fire that killed 25

The Goa police on Tuesday detained Ajay Gupta, one of the four owners of 'Birch by Romeo Lane' nightclub, where a devastating fire claimed the lives of 25 persons. The state police had earlier issued a Look Out Circular (LOC) against Gupta and another owner Surinder Kumar Khosla. "We have detained Ajay Gupta, one of the owners of the nightclub. This is the sixth person to be held in connection with the case," a Goa police spokesperson said. "Earlier, an LOC was issued against him as a police team had failed to find him at his Delhi residence when it visited it there," he said, adding that Gupta was later found in the national capital and was detained. He will soon be placed under arrest after the completion of formalities to bring him to Goa, the official said. Two more owners of the nightclub - Saurabh Luthra and Gaurav Luthra - are on the run and a blue corner notice has been issued against them. The police have so far arrested five persons - nightclub's chief general manager .

Nightclub fire case: Goa Police seeks Interpol Blue Notice against owners

The Goa Police has approached the CBI for issuance of an Interpol Blue Notice against Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra, the main accused and owners of the Goa nightclub where a massive blaze claimed 25 lives, after they fled the country, officials said Tuesday. Saurabh Luthra and Gaurav Luthra, the owners of the Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub in Arpora where the incident happened on Saturday, are believed to have fled to Phuket, Thailand, hours after the tragedy, the Goa Police said on Monday. The Interpol Blue Notice is issued to collect additional information about a person's identity, location or activities in relation to a criminal investigation. The agency is in touch with the Interpol regarding the request of the Goa Police to track the fugitives. The Red Notice which calls for detention of the fugitive can only be issued after a charge sheet is filed and a Non Bailable Warrant is issued against the wanted person. "Goa Police have taken further steps to coordinate with the Interpol