"We Can't Recognise Them": Families Search For Loved Ones After Delhi Fire

Grief-stricken relatives, friends and acquaintances crowded the waiting area of Max Hospital in Saket on Wednesday, anxiously searching for their loved ones hours after a massive fire at a hotel in south Delhi's Malviya Nagar area left at least 21 people dead.

The hospital's waiting area was filled with people scanning lists, making frantic phone calls and seeking information from officials as victims of the blaze were brought in for treatment and identification.

"We can't recognise them by looking at pictures; it's unrecognisable. Everyone is severely burnt," (Photo se pehchaan me nahi aa rha koi, sab jale hue hain)," one of the relatives said while sobbing.

Among them was Namit Goel, who said six of his relatives were among those caught in the fire. While four bodies had been identified, two were yet to be identified, leaving the family in agonising uncertainty.

"Four bodies are in Max Saket mortuary and two bodies are in another hospital. We are trying to locate them," he said.

According to the family members, the six family members had come from Gurugram for medical treatment and were staying at the hotel when the fire broke out.

Elsewhere in the hospital, Vivek was searching for his 25-year-old friend Sujita, who was believed to be among those affected by the blaze.

He said police officials showed him photographs of victims for identification, but he could not find her among them.

"Can't recognise her, her phone is also not traceable," he said.

The fire broke out at the Flourish Stay bed-and-breakfast hotel in the congested Hauz Rani locality, triggering panic among occupants trapped inside.

Several people were rescued from the premises, while eyewitnesses recounted scenes of chaos as thick smoke engulfed the structure and people desperately tried to escape.

A police official present at the hospital said that at least 21 people were killed and more than 40 rescued, and more than 20 victims have been brought to Max Saket. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained and an investigation is underway.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)