KUWAIT CITY: It is reported that 21 Indians died in the Kuwait fire accident that shocked Kerala. 11 out of them are Malayalis. The names of Indians, including Malayalees, who died in the accident that killed 40 people have been released.

The deceased have been identified as Umarudheen Shameer, Ranjith Kundadukkam, Shibu Varghese, Thomas Joseph, Praveen Madhav Singh, Lukose Vadakkott Unnoonni, Bhoonath Richard Roy Anand, Kelu Ponmaleri, Stephen Abraham Sahu, Anil Giri, Muhammad Shareef, Saju Varghese, Dwarikesh Patnaik, PV Muraleedharan, Viswas Krishnan, Arun Babu, Sajan George, Raymond Magpantay, Jesus Oliveros Lopez, Akash Sasidharan Nair, and Danny Baby Karunakaran. 46 Indians were injured.

What happened?

Officials said that a fire broke out in the kitchen of a six-storey building in the Mangaf area of ​​Kuwait's southern Ahmadi governorate early on Wednesday. Gas cylinders exploding in the fire added to the depth of the accident.

The accident happened at 6 am local time on Wednesday morning. (8.30 am IST) Although many occupants of the building were rescued, many died of smoke inhalation. Indian Ambassador to Kuwait visited the spot. The embassy said it is committed to providing all possible assistance. An emergency helpline number has been established by the Embassy: +965-65505246.

Present situation

Kuwait Interior Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah described the incident as a real tragedy. The fire brigade and forensic team are camping at the spot. Six people who were injured in the accident later died in the hospital. Interior Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah ordered the arrest of the owner of the building, the guard of the building and the owner of the company responsible for the workers living in the building.

On inspection by the officials, it was reported that around 160 company workers were living in the building. The minister said in a statement that what happened was the result of the greed of the company and the building owners. Sheikh Fahad informed that the Kuwait Municipality and the Public Authority for Manpower have been instructed to take immediate action to resolve such violations of the law in which a large number of workers are crowded in residential buildings and to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the incident. Indian Minister of State for External Affairs has left for Kuwait.