Kolkata hotel fire: 5 Bangladeshi victims identified

Five of the people killed in a devastating fire at a residential hotel near New Market in Kolkata, West Bengal, India, have been confirmed to be Bangladeshi citizens.

Bangladesh’s Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata, Mohammad Khaled, confirmed the information to Prothom Alo on Wednesday afternoon.

Mohammad Khaled told Prothom Alo that four of the five Bangladeshis whose identities have been confirmed were from Kushtia and one was from Dhaka.

The five Bangladeshis have been identified as Debashis Dutta, Afsana Shimmin, Sharnashish Dutta and Md Akram Ali, all from Kushtia, and Ahmed Babu of Savar, Dhaka.

Deputy High Commissioner Mohammad Khaled said an official from the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission had visited the police station and morgue. The official, together with local police, confirmed the identities of the five Bangladeshis.

The Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata said efforts are underway to determine whether any other Bangladeshi citizens are among those killed in the fire.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a press release that media reports indicated that several Bangladeshi citizens had died in a fire at a hotel in Kolkata, West Bengal, in the early hours of Wednesday. Immediately after learning of the incident, officials from the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata went to the scene. They tried to gather information about the dead and injured.

According to local authorities, nine people were killed in the fire. Local police have confirmed that five of them were Bangladeshi citizens. The identities of the others have not yet been confirmed by local authorities.

In addition, six Bangladeshi citizens who were injured in the fire were discharged after receiving initial treatment.