Fire in Kuwait: Dozens of people die during construction of residential building for foreign workers

CNN
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According to the Kuwaiti Interior Ministry, at least 49 people were killed on Wednesday when a fire broke out in a residential building housing foreign workers.

A video circulating on social media and geolocated by CNN showed the moment the fire engulfed the six-story building in the Mafreg neighborhood. About 150 people lived in the block when fire broke out on the ground floor, police officer Sayyed Hasan Ebrahim told Kuwaiti state television.

The cause of the fire, which has now been contained, is unknown, but the presence of over 20 cooking gas tanks and combustible materials in the crowded block caused the fire to spread quickly, Ebrahim said.

Most of the deaths were due to suffocation, General Eid Rashed of the Criminal Investigation Department said on state television. He warned that the death toll could rise, adding that 11 people were being treated in hospitals. Authorities had identified three of the bodies, he said, but did not say whether their families had been notified.

A fire official said it was difficult for trapped residents to escape the burning building due to the large number of floors and escape corridors.

Indian citizens were among the fatalities, the Indian Foreign Ministry said. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the fire a “misfortune” and described it as “sad.”

“My thoughts are with all those who have lost their loved ones. I pray that the injured recover as soon as possible,” Modi said on X.

Modi also directed his government to provide “all possible assistance” to the Kuwaiti authorities. The Indian foreign minister is travelling to Kuwait to oversee relief efforts and repatriate deceased Indian citizens.

Indian Ambassador to Kuwait Adarsh ​​Swaika visited several injured people in hospital and at the fire site.

Photos of the aftermath show a blackened ground floor as Kuwaiti security forces assess the damage. The building’s owner has been arrested and is being investigated for negligence, the reports added.

Two-thirds of Kuwaiti private sector workers are migrants. Human rights groups have long pointed out that they face legal and discriminatory challenges that Kuwaiti citizens do not experience. Human Rights Watch’s 2023 World Report states that migrant workers in Kuwait face “verbal, physical, and sexual abuse” and are often “forcibly confined to their employers’ homes.” A 2023 study by international and Kuwaiti researchers concludes that existing labor regulations in Kuwait are inadequate, noting that high temperatures “significantly increase the risk of workplace accidents,” despite previous attempts by the government to address the problem.

“Especially socially disadvantaged workers and migrant workers may be disproportionately affected by dangerous heat,” the study says. “These vulnerable workers tend to take on risky jobs without receiving adequate health and safety training, work longer hours, earn less, face cultural and language barriers, and fear the looming threat of deportation. They have been found to be more likely to suffer workplace accidents.”

The Embassy of the State of Kuwait in Washington did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.

This is a developing story and will be updated.