At least 15 people, including two children and a woman, were killed after a major fire broke out at a hotel in Kolkata, India, on Tuesday evening, April 29, 2025.
According to Kolkata Police Chief Manoj Verma, several guests were rescued from the building’s rooms and rooftop as the blaze engulfed the hotel. “The hotel turned into a gas chamber, and it appears many victims died from suffocation,” Verma told AFP. An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire.
The fire occurred at the Rituraj Hotel, a budget accommodation in a crowded business area of central Kolkata. At the time of the incident, 88 guests were inside. More than a dozen people sustained burn injuries and are currently receiving treatment.
Videos captured by the Press Trust of India showed flames engulfing the building as desperate guests attempted to escape through windows and narrow ledges. One person reportedly died after jumping from the terrace, according to local newspaper The Telegraph.
Firefighters have since brought the blaze under control, with cooling operations ongoing.
Building fires are a frequent hazard in India, often due to inadequate firefighting infrastructure and poor enforcement of safety codes. Just last year, six people died in a similar hotel fire in Patna, Bihar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended his condolences to the victims’ families and wished the injured a swift recovery.
Kolkata, home to over 15 million people, is the capital of West Bengal, a state governed by the Trinamool Congress party.
