A file photo of Park Hotel (Credit: Booking.com)
A fire broke out at New Delhi’s Park Hotel on Monday morning, following which 11 guests were rushed to the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital after complaints of breathlessness due to inhalation of smoke.
Two Norwegian men, who are still recovering at the hospital, were among 11 guests rushed to the hospital, the hospital said in a health bulletin released at 4:30 PM.
“Today morning at about 11 AM, nine patients were brought to casualty after a fire incident at Park Hotel. Seven patients were discharged after being given first aid,” said Dr (Brigadier) S Katoch, Additional Director (Medical) at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.
“Two male patients from Norway have been admitted for breathing difficulty due to suspected inhalation injury,” he informed through a statement.
According to a report in IANS, the fire was reported only after three foreigners complained of breathlessness due to smoke. They have been admitted to a hospital.
According to the news agency, the fire department received a call at 12.25 p.m., following which five fire tenders were rushed to the spot, Delhi fire service chief Atul Garg told IANS, adding that by the time the fire tenders reached there blaze had been brought under control.
He said why the fire department or the police were not informed will be part of an investigation.
According to Delhi Police, “The smoke which emanated from the basement of the hotel engulfed the entire building which left the people gasping for breath. The hotel management without informing the police took the affected people to Ganga Ram hospital. After that someone called the police about the incident.”
Deepak Yadav, additional DCP, New Delhi, said, “SHO Connaught Place has been asked to investigate the matter as to why police was not informed about the fire incident, though it was minor.”
According to the Police and Delhi Fire Service, 14 people were affected due to the smoke. Out of them only three are still in Ganga Ram hospital. They are from Norway.
The hotel management told IANS, “This was a minor fire due to a short circuit. Some people complained of breathlessness due to smoke and were taken to the hospital. We are trying to fix the problem so that the incident is not repeated.”
(with reporting inputs from Dhairya Maheshwari)
