The fire broke out at Birch, a club located just off Baga Beach and the numerous other popular beaches in Goa, shortly after midnight.
A devastating fire in the town of Arpora in north Goa has resulted in at least 23 deaths to date. This is not something that has been seen in this area for quite some time.
The fire broke out at Birch, a club located just off Baga Beach and the numerous other popular beaches in Goa, shortly after midnight.
According to police, the initial cause of the fire was the explosion of a gas cylinder. During the explosion, many of the club’s employees were inside the facility working at the time, providing them with no opportunity to escape.
Throughout the night, over 50 firefighters were called out to put out the blaze, but it was not until Sunday morning that the fire was fully extinguished. They also spent time on Sunday searching for any potential survivors and trying to put out what was left of the fire.
Authorities confirmed a significant number of workers were at the club during the time of the incident and therefore, were among the fatalities. The Director-General of Police and other senior officials from the North Goa district immediately went to the area after reports of a fire to help coordinate rescue efforts and assistance to those affected by the incident.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant expressed profound sadness over the loss of life and stated that “today is a very sad and tragic day for the people of Goa. The horrific fire incident has taken 23 lives at Arpora.” He expressed his sympathies to the many affected families during this time of unimaginable pain.
“I have visited the site of the incident and ordered an investigation into what led to this incident. This investigation will determine the cause of the fire and whether there were compliance issues with fire safety regulations and building requirements. If evidence indicates that someone was negligent, there will be the strongest legal actions against that person,” the Chief Minister stated.
The Chief Minister’s commitment to conduct an investigation raises awareness again, about whether proper fire safety regulations are enforced and available to businesses in Goa’s nightlife and hospitality industries.
Investigation will include as to whether the club’s safety systems were adequate and that all emergency exits and related protocols were in conformance with established guidelines.
While this investigation begins the families of those who lost their lives in this incident will be waiting until they can identify their loved ones and receive any additional updates regarding this incident while also living through the outpouring of emotions caused by the tragedy due to all of the impacts on Florida’s busiest tourist destinations.
