At least nine dead including toddler after horror fire rips through tourist hotel leaving guests trapped in flames

A HORROR fire has ripped through a hotel in India and left nine dead including a toddler after dozens of guests were trapped inside. The deadly inferno broke out at around 2am as flames and thick smoke swept through the building as people desperately tried to escape. Civil defence personnel stand outside the hotel after the fire was extinguished in Kolkata, India Credit: AFP Investigators believe the fire first broke out on the third floor of the hotel and quickly spread to several rooms Credit: X/@ANI Firefighters were alerted to the fire on Wednesday as four fire engines rushed to the burning Shikha Inn Hotel. Around 60 people were rescued from the building but nine were found unconscious and later confirmed dead in hospital. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! The age of the child or any other victims is yet to be confirmed. A police officer told local news agency: “The dense smoke made it difficult for firefighters to climb the staircase and reach the upper floors. “While nine people have died, more deaths are feared. “Our priority was to rescue those trapped and determine the reasons for the fire.” The blaze was started on Free School Street, right next to New Market in Kolkata, one of the busiest and most crowded parts of the city. Investigators believe the fire first broke out on the third floor of the hotel and may have been sparked by an air conditioning unit exploding. Most read in The Sun Firefighters stand at an entryway to the burned-out hotel Credit: Reuters Onlookers and fire personnel gather at the site following the deadly blaze Credit: AFP An exact cause is yet to be confirmed. The flames are said to have spread rapidly to nearby rooms, filling the building with smoke and sending guests fleeing in panic. Early checks by officials have suggested the hotel did not have basic fire safety measures in place. Kolkata Police have now opened an investigation and are trying to trace the hotel’s owner and staff, who have not been found since the fire broke out. The Shikha Inn Hotel is frequently used to house people who are in Kolkata for medical treatment. It is believed that several of the dead are from Bangladesh. The tragedy comes just two days after another deadly hotel fire in West Bengal. In the early hours of August 17, at least eight people died and dozens more were hurt when a fire ripped through the Hotel Bideshini in Tarapith. That blaze broke out on the ground floor of the five storey hotel at around 4.30am while most guests were still asleep. Comment now