KARUR: “We could have planned to leave an hour earlier, or stayed back with them, and we could have died together,” a grief-stricken T Prabhu of Karur told TOI over phone from Kolkata, where he lost his two young children and father-in-law in a massive hotel fire on Tuesday night.
Prabhu’s children, Diya, 10, and Rithan, 3, and father-in-law, S Muthukrishnan, 61, were among 14 people who lost their life at Hotel Rituraj in Kolkata’s Mechhua Bazar.

Tragedy struck the family at the end of what was to be a memorable 12-day family tour across northern and eastern India. The bags were packed, checkout was planned and only dinner remained. Prabhu, who runs an aloe vera products business across India, had stepped out briefly with his wife Madhumitha to buy food, leaving behind the children and his father-in-law in Room 313 on the third floor of the hotel. Moments later, a massive fire engulfed the hotel. By the time the couple returned with the food, flames had consumed the building.
“We were planning to check out by 8.30pm after dinner. It all happened so fast,” said Prabhu. “I still cannot believe they are not coming back with us,” he said breaking down.
The family had arrived in Kolkata on the morning of April 29 after touring Delhi, Sikkim and Darjeeling as part of a ‘long-awaited trip’ that began on April 17 from Trichy. They had chosen Hotel Rituraj for their final stop before heading to Chennai and back to Karur. According to official reports, the fire broke out between 7.30pm and 8pm on Tuesday.
Of the 14 people who died, 13 succumbed to suffocation, while one person jumped from the building in panic. Narrating the incident, Prabhu said, “A few people were rescued, but as far as I know now, there was no proper emergency exit for those trapped on all six floors.”
Meanwhile, chief minister M K Stalin expressed his condolences to the family and assured them that the govt would support them during this difficult time. DMK MLA and former minister V Senthilbalaji also extended his condolences. Tamil Maanila Congress president G K Vasan urged the state govt to facilitate transportation of the victims’ bodies to Karur. Prabhu said Karur collector M Thangavel had assured him over phone of assistance in bringing the bodies to the town. Vasan called for a thorough investigation into the incident.