AUGUSTO RODRIGUES
Three females – two burnt beyond recognition – were among the 25 peo ple who died when Birch by Romeo Lane in Arpora went up in flames late on Saturday night. The fire, which erupted after 11 pm, is already being described as India’s biggest man-made tourism tragedy. Police later clarified that the deceased included four tour ists and 14 staff members, while the identities of seven others were still being estab lishedAs the enormity of the loss settled in, the picture that emerged was one of official apathy, regulatory collapse Goa’s worst man-made tourism disaster lays bare shocking negligence Three women among 25 dead as unlicensed, unsafe Birch by Romeo Lane goes up in flames; survivors recount chaos while officials face scrutiny and the reckless disregard of the club’s owners for even the most basic safety norms. Political leaders alleged that the establishment did not pos sess a fire NOC or even permission to serve liquor. An FIR has been regis tered against owners Saurabh Luthra and Gaurav Luthra, the club manager and the event organisers under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita. Roshan Red kar, sarpanch of Arpora-Nagoa who had issued a trade licence in 2013, was also questioned. Earlier in the day, police suggested that a cylinder blast may have sparked the blaze, but survivors provided a dif ferent account. Several guests, including Delhi tourist Riya, said the fire started on the first floor when fireworks were set off during a dance performance. “Firecrackers burst all around when dancers were performing. There was a stampede-like situation,” she said. Another tourist, Fatima Shaikh from Hyderabad, recalled, “There was a sudden commotion as the flames started erupting. At least a hundred people were on the dance floor. Some ran downstairs to the kitchen and got trapped with the staff.” She added that a temporary construction made of palm leaves “caught fire instant ly.” The nightclub, she said, was jam packed as it was the weekend. A traumatised guest recovering at her hotel said, “Is this the way Goa wants to sell itself? It was mayhem once the fire broke out and there was nothing around that could help us try to put it off. We just ran for our lives. Luckily we three survived, but this is the last time we want to do an ything with Goa.”
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According to forensic officials, the blaze began when a compound from a pyro-gun struck the wooden ceil ing, a theory that appeared to be backed by a viral video circulating online. A locked escape route and the ab sence of fire extinguishers inside the wooden structure proved fatal. Eight post-mortems conducted on Sunday were all of basement staff; they died of hypoxia without burn injuries as carbon particles filled their respirato ry tracts. Investigators suspect the flaming ceiling col lapsed over the basement entrance, sealing off the only exit. Forensic personnel also flagged the dangerous con struction: “In a wooden structure like this, there should have been fire sprinklers every 100 metres. None could be seen.” Staff records were non-existent. “The manager has no record of who worked there,” a police officer con firmed. The tragedy was compounded by poor access. Narrow lanes prevented fire tenders from reaching the spot, forc ing tankers to be parked nearly 400 metres away. “Con trolling the blaze became extremely difficult,” a senior Fire and Emergency Services officer admitted. Most victims, he said, died of suffocation after being trapped on the ground floor. Local authorities, too, came under pressure. Panch of the ward, Steffi Fernandes, said that the sarpanch had already stated the club was operating under a demo lition order and without a licence. Levinson Martins, Chairman of the Goa State Pollution Control Board, said the outlet had only an Air and Water Act licence valid until 10 pm, although an FIR for noise pollution had been filed against it in August 2024. Deputy Inspector General of Police Varsha Sharma confirmed the blaze occurred around 11 pm and said any violation of noise norms would be added to the charges. Outside the Goa Medical College morgue, grief and frustration were palpable. Distraught families from Jharkhand, Assam and elsewhere waited anxiously for news. Some relatives from Jharkhand said they would not accept the bodies unless the nightclub owner arranged to transport the remains home. A senior police official said it would take a full day to identify all victims and complete post-mortems. Locals questioned why only the owners and manag er were being arrested while officials who allowed the unlicensed, unsafe establishment to operate remained untouched. “The Chief Minister should arrest his of ficers who allowed the place to function without a li cence, when it was in dispute and without fire safety norms,” said a coastal businessman who did not wish to be named. “Nowadays, pub and club owners from Delhi tell the government how they’re going to run their es tablishments. This is what is going to kill tourism.”– With inputs from agencies
