NEW DELHI (AFP) – A fire at a private hospital in southern India killed at least six people, police said yesterday, with more than two dozen others injured in the blaze.
Building fires are common in India due to a lack of firefighting equipment and a routine disregard for safety regulations.
The fire broke out late on Thursday night in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, and its cause is still being investigated. All six victims were found unconscious inside a lift at the hospital in the city of Dindigul, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.
Police superintendent A Pradeep told AFP that around 30 people had been injured but all were “stable”.
The fire started at the reception area on the ground floor and rapidly spread to the other floors, the Times of India newspaper reported.
The blaze came just weeks after 10 newborns were killed when a fire engulfed a hospital in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.
