Kerala Man Dies in Kuwait Fire, Wanted To Gift Phone To Teen Daughter

Lukose had bought a mobile phone for his elder daughter who had scored excellent marks in the plus two (class 12) board exams and was going to bring it next month when he planned to come home to arrange her admission in a nursing course in Bengaluru.

However, what reached his family on Wednesday was unconfirmed news reports that the building he was living in, in Kuwait, was the one that had caught fire which claimed at least 49 lives and injured many others.

One of his relatives told a TV channel on Thursday that friends of Lukose called and informed them about what happened.

"They told us that the fire accident occurred around 4 am and at that time, Lukose had called the pastor of a church there. He spoke to the pastor briefly before the call got disconnected. On calling his phone back, it was ringing, but no one picked up," he said.

At that point, everyone thought he was alive, the relative said.

Later, friends and church members enquired at the building where Lukose was living and at nearby hospitals and found that he was among those caught in the fire, he said.

"But his death was not confirmed. Then in the evening, the friends and church members went to the police to enquire and that is when his death was confirmed," the relative said.

The relative further said that Lukose, who worked in Kuwait for the last 18 years, was survived by father (93), 88-year-old mother, wife and two daughters.

"His elder daughter scored excellent marks in plus 2. So, he bought a phone for her. He was going to bring it when he planned to come next month. He was also going to take her to Bengaluru for admission in a nursing course," the relative added.

At least 49 foreign workers were killed and 50 others injured in the fire on Wednesday at the seven-storey building where 196 migrant workers were staying in the southern city of Mangaf.

Most of the deaths were due to smoke inhalation, Kuwaiti media reported, adding that the fire started in a kitchen.

Construction firm NBTC group rented the building for the stay of more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and northern states, the Kuwaiti media said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)