Kheda: Three members of a family from Gujarat died after a fire swept through a motel in Wooster, Ohio, early on Thursday, trapping them inside their living quarters despite desperate attempts to seek help before the blaze engulfed the building.
The victims were identified as Hitesh Suthar, his wife Hina and their 20-year-old daughter, Ishani.
The family, originally from Nadiad in Gujarat’s Kheda district, had moved to the United States about two years ago and had been living at the Econo Lodge motel where Hitesh was employed.
The fire broke out at about 1.30 a.m. local time at the Econo Lodge motel, where Hitesh worked. The family lived at the motel as part of their accommodation.
According to available information, the family was inside their room when the blaze started.
As smoke and flames spread through the building, Hitesh called the motel’s front desk seeking help.
Hotel employee April Graser, who was on duty when the fire broke out, said the overnight shift had begun routinely before the alarms suddenly sounded.
She said the trapped family contacted the front desk, where they were advised to turn on the water in the bathroom and remain there while emergency services were called.
Recalling the call, Graser said she could hear the family crying as they were unable to escape.
“He pleaded with me to get help because they were trapped inside the building and could not get out of their room. I could hear them crying and screaming,” Graser said.
The family locked themselves inside the bathroom in an attempt to protect themselves from the smoke and flames. However, the fire took time to bring under control, and all three died of suspected suffocation before rescuers could reach them.
When firefighters arrived, they found heavy smoke and flames coming through the motel’s roof.
According to local reports, crews made repeated attempts to rescue people trapped inside the building.
“We saw multiple units on fire, fire through the roof, made multiple rescue attempts, and unfortunately, those were unsuccessful, and there are confirmed three deceased occupants from the motel,” officials said.
Images from the scene showed extensive damage to a detached rear section of the motel, located about 96 kilometres south of Cleveland.
The cause of the fire has not yet been established. Authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.
(IANS)
