73 killed in Kolkata hospital fire

At least 73 people were killed when a fire engulfed patients at a hospital Friday in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata, with officials accusing staff of abandoning those in their care.
The fire broke out at around 3:00 am (2130 GMT Thursday) when the vast majority of the 160 patients inside the privately-run, five-storey facility were asleep.
The senior vice president of the AMRI hospital, S. Upadhayay, said 73 people had been confirmed dead, including three members of staff.
Fire officials said initial investigations suggested the blaze had started in the basement, with most of the victims suffocating on the thick, acrid smoke that quickly filled the wards on the floors above.
By 9:00 am, the blaze had largely been brought under control, but smoke continued to billow from shattered windows, as firemen struggled to reach those still trapped inside.
A number of immobile patients were evacuated down the side of the building using ropes and pulleys.
It was the second fire in three years at the same facility and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who visited the site, promised a full investigation.
Banerjee ordered the hospital’s licence to be cancelled with immediate effect and said “severe” action would be taken if fire prevention standards were found to have been below standard.
The state’s Public Health Engineering Minister, Subrata Mukherjee, said senior members of the hospital staff appeared to have fled as soon as the fire broke out, leaving their patients, many of whom were elderly or infirm.
“It was horrifying that the hospital authorities did not make any effort to rescue trapped patients,” Mukherjee told reporters.
Several hundred angry and distraught relatives gathered outside to follow the rescue operation, with some calling for the hospital management to be arrested.
“My mother is in the intensive care unit. She’s 70 years old. I don’t know if she is alive or not,” Khokon Chakravathi told AFP.
Badal Sikari, a local resident who had helped the first emergency teams to arrive at the scene, said he had seen “several bodies” of people who appeared to have suffocated.
Fire engines had trouble reaching the hospital, which is surrounded by a network of narrow, winding roads.
Rescued patients and those who managed to escape said they had woken up to find their wards full of acrid smoke.
“I was terrified, I kept shouting for help,” said Jyoti Chaudhary who was admitted to the hospital a week before.
“Finally, a nurse dragged me out of the ward and got me down to the ground floor,” said Chaudhary, who was then taken to the adjacent hospital wing.
Ananya Das, 34, bearing stitches on her stomach from minor surgery carried out the day before, said she was in post-operative recovery when the fire broke out.
“I managed to walk towards and exit and then climb out of a window. I saw a lot of bodies,” she said.
AMRI administrator Upadhayay insisted that the hospital followed strict fire safety measures and conducted regular drills.
“All statutory safety and fire licences are in place,” he said.
The hospital has announced compensation of 500,000 rupees ($10,000) for the families of each victim.