At least 70 people died this morning after a fire raced through multiple floors of the Advanced Medical Research Institute, a private hospital in a southern suburb of Kolkata. A hospital spokesperson said the hospital was near capacity at the time of the blaze, with all but one of the 161 beds occupied and including 40 intensive care patients. Javed Khan, the fire services minister, told reporters at the scene that the fire had destroyed the first four floors of the hospital, leaving staff and patients in a state of chaos. He said surviving patients had been relocated to government hospitals in the area. Mamata Banerjee, chief minister of West Bengal state, said she had rushed to the hospital after news of the fire spread and remained outside to help pacify angry relatives of the victims. She told reporters that a committee would be established to investigate the cause of the fire and that those responsible would be held to account for what she called an “unforgiveable crime.” Several relatives of victims expressed anger at what they said was a lack of information and coordination by hospital officials. Chandana Sarkar said that hospital officials refused to let her take home the body of her husband, who was undergoing treatment for a stroke at the time the fire broke out. Banerjee said the bodies of some 50 victims had been transferred to other hospitals and would be returned to family members pending autopsies. Sukumar Chowdhury said hospital staff had denied his request to move his wife and other patients when he saw black smoke billowing into her room. “In the meantime, most people choked to death,” he said, sitting near his wife’s body. A police official who declined to be named said authorities would file a case of criminal negligence against the hospital but would not provide any further details. Banerjee told reporters that victims’ family members would be given 500,000 rupees (US$9,650) in compensation.
