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Pall of gloom descends over two Kottayam families

KOTTAYAM: The eldest of three brothers, 29-year-old Stephin Abraham Sabu from Pampady here was excited about moving into their newly built house by August after living in a rented accommodat­ion for over 13 years.

However, a pall of doom descended on their rented accommodat­ion here on Thursday after unconfirme­d news reports about his death in Kuwait fire incident.

Sabu, who had been working in Kuwait for the past six years, had come home six months ago to buy some material, like tiles, for the new house under constructi­on, the landlord of the house in Pampady, where his family lived, told reporters. “Just two days ago, he called his mother, asking about the constructi­on work and how it was progressin­g. They were also excited about moving into their new home. They have been living here on rent for over 13 years,” the landlord said.

A marriage was also on the cards for Sabu. “They had seen the girl. They were planning to move forward with the proposal after he returns and they shift into the new home,” the landlord said.

The landlord remembered Sabu as an excellent and hard-working student. “His brothers were also excellent in their studies. The youngest is working in Israel, and the one in the middle is in Kuwait,” he said.

Besides Sabu, another person belonging to Kottayam, 27-yearold Srihari Pradeep, was also living in the same building in Kuwait which caught fire. He was also charred to death.

Neither the Centre and state government­s nor the Indian Embassy in Kuwait have officially confirmed the identities of the Indians who perished in the fire.

According to Kuwait officials, the victims suffocated while trying to run down the stairs because they were filled with smoke, adding that the victims could not go to the rooftop because the door was locked.

Meanwhile, Kuwait's public prosecutor has launched an investigat­ion into the incident. The probe aims to uncover the circumstan­ces behind the incident and what might have triggered the deadly fire, the public prosecutor said on X.