Massive fire at Lotus Grenadier banquet hall in Noida claims electrician's life

Noida: A massive fire broke out in the early hours of Wednesday in a banquet hall here, resulting in the death of an electrician, officials said.

Police said the fire erupted around 3:30 am in the "Lotus Grenadier" banquet hall near Sarfabad village under the jurisdiction of Sector-113 police station.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 1) Rambadan Singh said fire department personnel reached the scene around 3:40 am with five fire engines.

However, as the fire kept spreading, 10 more fire engines were dispatched to contain the blaze.

"Several people trapped inside were safely evacuated but an electrician named Pravendra died in the fire," Singh said.

Chief Fire Officer Pradeep Kumar Chaubey said the hall's primarily wooden structure contributed to the rapid spread of the fire. It took the department nearly three hours to bring the fire under control.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, police said.

A similar fire incident occurred in the same banquet hall on November 21 last year. No casualties were reported in that incident.