Kuwait fire: 16 Keralites laid to rest so far

Pathanamthitta: The last rites of four Keralites, who lost their lives in the tragic fire incident in Kuwait on June 12, were held at their respective hometowns in Kerala on Saturday where hundreds came to bid adieu.

The bodies of 23 Keralites who lost their lives in the fire that happened in one of the residential accommodations of a company at Mangaf in Kuwait, were brought to the state on Friday in a special flight from the Gulf nation.

The funerals of 12 Keralites were held on Friday itself, while four of them were held today.

The funerals of Lucas and Sajan George from Kollam, Aneesh Kumar from Kannur and Akash S Nair from Pathanamthitta were held today.

Minister Saji Cheriyan, Deputy Speaker Chittayam Gopakumar and various religious leaders took part in the funeral of Akash, a Pandalam resident.

Six people from Pathanamthitta district lost their lives in the incident.

The funerals of the remaining seven people will be held in the coming days, sources said.

Officials said that 49 people were killed in the fire in the Al-Mangaf building on June 12 and the majority of them were Indians; the remaining were Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian and Nepali nationals.

Out of the total casualties, 45 were Indians.

The bodies of 23 Keralites, seven Tamil Nadu natives and one Karnataka native were brought to Kochi from Kuwait on a special flight of the Indian Air Force.