Kuwait Building Fire: Dozens killed

CNN
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Official media reported on Wednesday, citing officials, that at least 49 people were killed after a fire broke out in a building housing foreign workers in Kuwait City.

A video clip circulated on social media, identified by CNN, showed the moment the fire broke out in the six-story building in the city’s Mafraq area. Police official Mr. Hassan Ibrahim told Kuwaiti state television that about 150 people were living in the building when the fire broke out on the ground floor.

Ibrahim added that the cause of the contained fire is unknown, but the presence of more than 20 cooking gas tanks and flammable materials in the crowded building led to its rapid spread.

Brigadier General Eid Rashid, from the police forensic medicine, told state television that most of the deaths were due to suffocation. He added that 11 people were receiving treatment in hospitals and that the police were trying to identify the victims.

Indian citizens were among the dead, according to the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The country’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the fire as an “unfortunate incident” and described it as “sad”.

“My thoughts are with all those who lost their near and dear ones. I pray that those affected recover as soon as possible,” Modi said on X.

Indian Ambassador to Kuwait Adarsh ​​Soika visited several injured people at the hospital and the fire site.

Post-accident photos show a blackened ground floor as Kuwaiti security forces assess the damage. Reports added that the building owner was arrested and investigated on charges of negligence.

This is a developing story and will be updated.