At least 25 killed in massive fire at Goa club

At least 25 people, including 20 staff members, were killed in the massive blaze that erupted at Birch by Romeo Lane in the early hours of Sunday.

A family in Delhi was left reeling on Sunday, hours after it emerged that a fire at a nightclub in Goa had claimed the lives of four members.

Charred remains of the nightclub (ANI photo)

At least 25 people, including 20 staff members, were killed in the massive blaze that erupted at Birch by Romeo Lane in the early hours of Sunday. Among the dead were three sisters Anita, Kamla, and Saroj Joshi as well as Vinod Kumar, the husband of another sister, Bhavna Joshni — who is also the lone survivor.

Anita and Kamla bodies have been identified and preserved with the inquest proceedings and post mortem examinations pending. But two of the other bodies were so completely charred that it had been “tough” to even identify them.

Kamla, who was the eldest sister in her family, is survived by her husband Naveen, a businessman, and their two children.

Vinod, Bhavna’s husband, is also Naveen’s brother since both sisters were married in same family. The couple also has two children and Vinod was also a businessman.

The mother of the sisters resides in Karawal Nagar, while their in-laws and other family members live across northeast Delhi and in Uttar Pradesh.

Their mother, who is elderly and frail, has not been told of her daughters’ deaths, according to a Harish Singh, a family friend and neighbour. “I think they left home last week. They were all very excited for the trip. It was their first trip to Goa. We didn’t know this would happen.”

He added, “Their mother’s health is not well right now. So, nobody has told her anything . We all know she will not be able to hear all this. Only Naveen knows. Nobody is allowed to visit aunty (mother). We are all helping the family. Vinod had joined his wife and the sisters to help them explore Goa. They wanted to go for a road trip as well.”

According to Singh, on the night of the incident, they had gone to the club for a meal. They were done by the time the fire broke out and were about to leave, but one of their sisters was stuck inside.

“The sisters rushed inside, followed by Vinod to save their kin. Sadly, they all died. Bhavna was only one who was able to rush outside. We kept calling their numbers as the news broke out. Everyone was panicking. It was later that a policeman called Naveen. They have husbands and children. What will happen now ?” said Singh.

Singh also said, “We spoke to Bhavna and she said there was a lot of chaos at the time of the fire. Everyone was running around and some people were stuck in kitchen. The family tried to escape but again went inside to save Bhavna and others but couldn’t come out as everyone was pushing each other and there were no proper exits. There was a lot of smoke and Bhavna somehow managed to get out after someone pushed her.”

Neeta Bisht, the area councillor, said she’s trying to get in touch with the family but everyone is too “traumatised”.

“We are all offering all the help they need. The sisters were young and working. They supported their families. The family is in too much pain. The sisters were sent with brother-in-law for the trip. Now both families are suffering,” said Bisht.