Garage fire: Deceased comprises of four women, six men

Maldives Police Service, on Friday, confirmed that 10 of the deceased in the fire which broke out at M. Nirufehi, in Male’ City, on early Thursday morning, comprises of four women and six men.

In a statement on Friday, Police said that the four women identified include three Indians and one Bangladeshi.

Meanwhile, they detailed that from the five men identified so far, four were Indian and one was Bangladeshi.

It was emphasized in their statement that the identity of one of the deceased men has not been established yet.

Police said that the case is under further investigation.

The bodies of all deceased persons were severely burned in the fire, rendering efforts to establish their identity a difficult task.

The fire broke out in a car repair garage in M. Nirufehi, located near the Maaveyo Mosque, around 12:30am on early Thursday morning. The garage is located on the ground floor, while the first-floor houses cramped living quarters for migrant workers – the only ventilation – a single window. Authorities state that cooking gas cylinders were next to each bed, where the migrants slept.

The quarters housed migrant workers from Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka.

10 people died, while one, identified as a Bangladeshi national, is in critical condition.

As per the authorities, the migrant quarters housed at least 38 people, and there were cooking gas cylinders placed next to each bed. 28 were rescued, of which nine remain under NDMA’s care; six women and three men. 

The incident marks the fire with the highest number of fatalities in the Maldives.