Dal Lake Inferno: Survivor Tourists Returning Home Soon

Srinagar- The tourists, who escaped miraculously in a houseboat blaze last week, are likely to return to their native places soon.

Five luxury houseboats, an equal number of wooden dwellings and a few concrete structures were reduced to ashes in a devastating blaze at Mir Mohalla near Ghat number 09 at Dal Lake on Saturday last.

Three Bangladeshi nationals on a trip to iconic tourist attraction-Dal Lake in Srinagar also lost their lives in the tragic fire incident. The deceased tourists were identified as Anindya Kawshal, Das Gupta and Mohammad Moinud, all residents of Bangladesh.

The survivors, a senior district administration official said, would most likely be returning back to their home shortly. He said further legal requirements, in addition to recording their statements, stands completed.

“They were relocated to a safe location within Dal Lake the same day. They are safe, but the awful events that transpired have somewhat unsettled them,” he added.

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Tariq Ahmad Patloo, a well known social activist and former president of the Houseboat Owners Association said the charred bodies of three visitors from Bangladesh were found near the kitchen side of the houseboat.

“Considering that it is the winter season in Kashmir, nobody was awake when the fire broke out. Though it’s not as if they wouldn’t have tried to escape the houseboat, Patloo speculated that the victims might have hurried towards the kitchen side in search of safety and died,” he said.

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