The fire service said on Thursday that nine Indian workers were among ten people killed in a fire that swept through cramped lodgings of foreign workers in the Maldives’ capital Male, adding that several others were injured in the fire.
According to officials, 10 bodies were found on the upper floor of a building that was completely destroyed by the fire, which started from a ground-floor auto repair shop.
According to a security official, among the dead were nine Indians and one Bangladeshi.
“We found ten bodies,” a fire official told AFP, adding that it took them four hours to extinguish the fire.
The Indian High Command in Maldives responded to the incident and said in a statement, “We are deeply saddened by the tragic fire incident in Malé which has caused loss of lives, including reportedly of Indian nationals. We are in close contact with the Maldivian authorities.”
In a Twitter statement, the Indian High Command also listed helpline numbers.
Foreign worker conditions have been criticised by Maldivian political parties.
They are thought to account for roughly half of Male’s 250,000 population and are primarily from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
Their substandard living conditions were highlighted during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the infection spread three times faster among foreign workers than among locals.
The archipelago’s capital, best known as an upscale vacation destination, is one of the world’s most densely populated cities.