13 killed, seven critical in UP hotel blaze

A devastating fire at a hotel in Uttar Pradesh's Pratapgarh town, about 150 kilometres from here, at dawn on Friday claimed 13 lives and left over two dozens injured.

The number of dead could go up, as at least seven of the injured were said to be in a critical condition.

According to police sources here, the fire, which is said to have been caused by a short circuit, caught the guests unaware as they were fast asleep in their rooms.

 “The guests tried to save themselves by entering into the bathrooms but suffocated to death”, said a fire official in Pratapgarh.

 The injured were rushed to the medical college hospital in Allahabad.

The intensity of the fire was such that it left the entire hotel, completely gutted.

Fire tenders were rushed from Allahabad to douse the flames. “It seems that the hotel did not have any anti-fire arrangements...we are verifying if it had a No Objection Certificate from the fire department'', said the official. The hotel has been sealed and its owner, identified as Sunil Goyal, has been arrested.

The deceased included a doctor from Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, sources said adding that many of the deceased were yet to be identified.

The UP government has announced a compensation of Rs two lakh each, to the next of kin of the deceased.