A fire broke out in the basement of The Park hotel here on Saturday morning following which 12 people, including 11 foreign nationals, were taken to a hospital, said officials. Nine of them were released after first aid, they said.
The incident happened at 9 a.m., said Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Deepak Yadav. However, the fire department said they were informed about the incident by the police at 12.25 p.m. after which five fire tenders were rushed to the spot.
The blaze was brought under control by the hotel staff with the help of fire extinguishers before the fire tenders reached the spot, a senior official said. But the smoke had engulfed the building, he said, adding that none of the people staying at the hotel suffered any serious injuries.
The police said they were not informed about the incident by the hotel management. “The police were informed about the incident by the hospital [Ganga Ram Hospital] at 11.45 a.m. from Rajinder Nagar police station,” Mr. Yadav said.
The Park said they are “deeply concerned about the incident that took place at the basement of the hotel this morning” and that “safety has always been our top priority”. Norwegian nationals — Abdi Bhasir and Joshim Kvan — were admitted to the hospital after they suffered breathing difficulties along with 30-year-old Kundan Rai, who suffered minor injuries.
The police said the fire started from the hotel basement due to a short circuit when a generator was being tested. A case under Section 285 (negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter) and 337 (causing hurt by act of endangering life or personal safety of others) of the IPC has been registered.
A statement by The Park hotel read: “There was a short circuit that lead to a minor fire, however, the situation was quickly normalised by our in-house crisis management team. Some of our guests were exposed to smoke and were sent for a thorough check up to the hospital...An investigation has been initiated to get to the bottom of the incident to ensure we can take measures to avoid a similar situation in future.”
