Goa Nightclub Manager Arrested, Warrant Issued Against Owner: Chief Minister To NDTV

The general manager of a club in Goa, where a deadly fire broke out on Sunday, has been arrested, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant told NDTV.

Four tourists and 14 staff members were among 25 people killed in the fire that broke out at the Birch By Romeo Lane, a popular party venue at Arpora village, about 25 kilometres from the state capital, Panaji.

An arrest warrant has been issued against the owner of the club, Sawant said.

"The fire broke out around 12 am. Many people could not come out (of the nightclub) due to the fire and died due to suffocation," Sawant said while confirming that 25 people were killed and six others injured in the incident.

Sawant said the injured are currently "out of danger" and are being treated at the Goa Medical College.

Sawant said he visited the incident site around 2 am to take stock of the situation and has ordered a magisterial inquiry.

"It is the first time that such an incident has occurred in Goa's history," he said.

Asked if the nightclub fire was "negligence", he said a probe has been ordered to ascertain if the nightclub followed fire safety norms.

Goa Nightclub Fire Broke Out On Dance Floor, Says Witness

A witness said that at least 100 persons were on the dance floor of the nightclub when a fire broke out, and in an attempt to escape, some of them ran downstairs to its kitchen, where they got trapped along with the staff.

"There was a sudden commotion as the flames started erupting. We rushed out of the club only to see that the entire structure was up in flames," Fatima Shaikh, a tourist from Hyderabad, told the news agency PTI.

The nightclub was jam-packed, as it was the weekend, and at least 100 persons were on the dance floor, she said.

She said that after the fire erupted, some tourists ran downstairs and went to the kitchen located on the ground floor.

"They (tourists) got trapped there along with other staff. Many managed to run out of the club," she said.

"There was a temporary construction made up of palm leaves which easily caught fire," she added.

The nightclub, which is situated in the backwaters of the Arpora River, reportedly had a narrow entry and exit.

A senior officer from the Fire and Emergency Services told PTI that the narrow access made it difficult to reach the spot.