(Image source from: Mediaoneonline.com)

Several Indian nationals were among 49 people killed in a fire at a residential building for workers in Mangaku, Kuwait. The incident occurred at 6:00 a.m. local time (9:00 a.m. local time). According to Kuwaiti authorities, more than 40 people were hospitalized. The fire broke out in the kitchen of the six-story building, officials said, adding that the building reportedly houses about 160 employees of the same company. Witnesses said some people died as they jumped from the fifth floor of the building to escape the fire. Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent a message to the families of the fire victims and offered prayers for the souls of the injured. The Indian Embassy in Kuwait is closely monitoring the situation and working with local authorities to provide assistance and speedy recovery to the affected people. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said the Indian ambassador was at the spot. S. Jaishankar said, “I am deeply shocked by the news of the fire incident in Kuwait City. More than 40 people have reportedly died and more than 50 people have been hospitalized. Our ambassador went to the camp. We are waiting for it”.

The Indian Embassy in Kuwait has issued a helpline number and revealed that a number of Indian personnel were involved in the fire incident and the embassy will provide all possible assistance. The emergency number is +965-65505246. Indian Ambassador to Kuwait Xhandel Adarsh Swayka said that more than 30 Indian workers who were injured in the fire were hospitalized. Ambassador Adaresh Savika visited Al-Adan Hospital where more than 30 workers injured in today's fire accident are being treated. He met many patients and expressed the embassy's full support: "According to the hospital report, almost all of them have been reported," said a post from the Indian Embassy in Kuwait. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced that Deputy External Affairs Minister Kirti Vardhan Singh is traveling to Kuwait to assist the Indian nationals injured in the fire. On the instructions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Ministry of External Affairs KV Singh is monitoring relief efforts for those injured in the fire accident and is working with local authorities for early repatriation of the bodies of those who lost their lives in the unfortunate incident, a spokesperson said: We are traveling urgently to Kuwait to make preparations.

The ambassador met the patients and assured them of the embassy's full support. Indians make up 21 percent of Kuwait's total population (1 million) and 30 percent of its workforce (about 9 million people). "Workers lived in the building that caught fire, and there were a lot of workers there. Dozens of people were rescued, but unfortunately many died of smoke inhalation from the fire," a senior police official told Reuters. . "We are always warning and warning," he said, without specifying the nature of the work or where the workers would arrive, to trap as many workers as possible in the residential buildings. The fire was brought under control and the authorities are investigating the fire. Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad al-Yusuf al-Sabah visited the site and ordered the arrest of the building's owner, Al Jazeera reported. "Unfortunately, the greed of property owners leads to such things," said Sheikh Fahad, who heads the interior and defense ministries.