Six guests perish in hotel blaze

Gondia (Maharashtra), Dec 21: At least six persons were killed in their sleep when a fire broke out in Hotel Bindal in this eastern Maharashtra town early on Wednesday, an official said.

"The blaze was noticed around 3.30 am when the victims were fast asleep. Six men have been charred to death. Some others are feared trapped inside," Gondia police officer Jitendra Borkar told IANS.

Five fire tenders and tankers were pressed into service to battle the flames which were brought under control after nearly seven hours.

A search is on to rescue some other guests feared trapped in the hotel. The cause of the fire is being investigated, Borkar added.

A tribal-dominated district, Gondia is around 170 km east of Nagpur and bordering Madhya Pradesh.