A massive fire broke out at a five-storey hotel near Jamnagar city of Gujarat on Thursday evening, 11 August, police said. No casualty was reported and as many as 27 people were rescued from the hotel.
Jamnagar District Superintendent of Police Premsukh Delu confirmed that no one was seriously injured in the incident.
"The fire started at about 7.30 pm and spread quickly. Twenty-seven guests were staying in 18 of the total 36 rooms. They were all rescued by police. Hotel staff too is safe," he said.
SP Delu also said that the fire was brought under control at around 10.30 pm by fire tenders from the Jamnagar fire brigade and Reliance (which has a refinery in the area).
Two or three people complained of breathlessness and were admitted to the hospital, Jamnagar Collector Saurabh Parghi told news agency ANI.
On Friday morning, a team of Meghpar Police, along with officials from the Forensic Science Laboratory and the electricity department, visited the hotel for a detailed investigation into the cause of the fire.
Chief Fire Officer of Jamnagar Municipal Corporation, KK Bishnoi, told PTI, "A primary probe revealed that the fire spread in a very short time due to the use of aluminum composite panel or ACP sheets on the facade of the hotel building."
He added that a short circuit in the electric panel on the ground floor outside the hotel ignited the fire, which spread quickly due to the combustible materials used in the sheets.
Bishnoi said that although the videos of the incident gave an early impression that the entire hotel was destroyed in the fire, only its front portion, which was made of ACP sheets, was gutted and there was no major damage to the building.
(With inputs from PTI.)
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