KOLKATA: An employee of a Kolkata hotel died after he jumped from the building when a fire broke out on the premises at about 9pm on Tuesday, officials said.
The five-storey hotel, located near the wholesale market at Mechua Bazar in north Kolkata, mostly caters to traders from other states.
Six fire tenders have been deployed to douse the flames that engulfed a portion of the ground and first floor.
“Several boarders and hotel staff climbed up the stairs and went to the roof and upper floor balconies when smoke filled up the room and corridors. One of these people panicked and jumped,” a fire department official said, requesting anonymity.
The deceased was identified as Manoj Paswan, a hotel staff.
“Manoj was from Jharkhand. He was working at the hotel for around 20 years,” Ramdeo Paswan, the deceased’s uncle and co-employee, told reporters.
Fire fighters used hydraulic ladders to rescue those who assembled in the balconies.
The flames did not spread to other parts of the building till 10 pm
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who was in Digha for the inauguration of the new Jagannath temple, inquired about the incident over phone and asked Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim to rush to the spot with police commissioner Manoj Verma, local Trinamool Congress leaders said.
{{/usCountry}}Chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who was in Digha for the inauguration of the new Jagannath temple, inquired about the incident over phone and asked Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim to rush to the spot with police commissioner Manoj Verma, local Trinamool Congress leaders said.
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