23 killed in Goa's Arpora nightclub fire: How a cylinder blast sparked deadly blaze; staffers trapped inside died of suffocation

At least 23 people have died after a fire tore through a popular nightclub in North Goa’s Arpora village late on Saturday night, officials said. Most of the victims were staff members working at the venue. Goa’s police chief Alok Kumar told news agency PTI that the blaze was triggered by a cylinder blast inside Birch by Romeo Lane, a nightclub that opened last year and is located about 25km from the state capital, Panaji. “All the 23 bodies have been recovered,” he said, adding that the victims were almost entirely club employees. Three women were among the dead, according to chief minister Pramod Sawant. Sawant, who visited the site shortly…