New Delhi: It was around 8.15 am when residents of South Delhi’s Hauz Rani heard loud screams coming from a fully occupied four-storey bed and breakfast.
Within minutes, the guesthouse, Flourish Stays, that hosts foreign nationals undergoing treatment at the nearby Max Hospital along with their caregivers, turned into a death trap.
Eyewitnesses said they heard what they assumed to be multiple cylinder blasts as the fire spread rapidly. Wires hanging from a nearby electric pole further fuelled the blaze.
More than 40 people, who were either undergoing treatment or recovering from surgery, were inside the building at the time. A total of 21 people have been confirmed dead so far. “They were too weak to escape,” an eyewitness said.
Bystanders said people were trapped inside as the building had only one entry and exit point, which was blocked by the fire. “It was extremely scary. The fire started on the ground floor and then spread upwards. We could hear loud screams and multiple blasts. We tried to enter the building but could not because the only entrance, which is quite narrow, was blocked. Another gate at the rear also appeared to be locked from inside,” said one.
In a desperate attempt to rescue those trapped in the building, employees of a nearby cotton mattress shop spread mattresses on the ground and urged people to jump.
Asma, an eyewitness, told The Print that she saw a foreign national fall from the second floor of the building in an attempt to escape. “She kept crying for help but since the gate was locked people could not enter and exit the building. She rolled out of the window semi naked and fell on a mattress that the locals had put out to help in the rescue.”
“We asked people to jump onto the mattresses. Some managed to escape, but several became unconscious after landing. They were choking from smoke and many of them were already weak because they were undergoing treatment at Max Hospital,” another eyewitness told ThePrint.
The B&B had 24 rooms—five on each floor, along with two rooms on the ground floor and in the basement. It primarily accommodates foreign nationals and their attendants travelling to India for medical treatment.
At least 10 victims are foreign nationals, senior Delhi Police officers told ThePrint.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)