In a bid to escape the fire that gutted a hotel in Delhi’s Karol Bagh on Tuesday, 12 February, two men, including an assistant income tax officer and a hotel cook, jumped off the five-storey building but did not survive the fall.
At least 17 people were killed and several injured in the fire that broke out at the Arpit Palace Hotel in the early hours of Tuesday.
The two men were identified as Tara Chand, a 30-year-old working as a cook with the hotel and Suresh Kumar, 52, an assistant Income Tax officer, who was staying at the hotel as a permanent paying guest.
Kumar is survived by his wife and son, who is currently studying in Bengaluru. His body will be taken to his home in Panchkula, after his son arrives in Delhi in the evening.
Tara Chand, who has been working in the hotel for the last two years, was the sole earning member of his family, which comprised his wife and four sons. His uncle, Pardip Chand, told The Quint, “We haven’t informed his wife and his sons yet. We want someone to be there with them when they find out about his (Tara Chand) death. His kids are very young.”
Videos of a man falling off the hotel building while trying to escape the blaze were also captured by eyewitnesses and shared on social media.
In the video, two men can be seen dangling from a ledge on the right side of the hotel building, as flames engulf the top floors. One of the men can be seen falling to the ground moments later.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)