Indore News: Kin Failed To Gauge Blaze Ferocity, losing the critical ‘Golden Hour'
· Free Press Journal
Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Family members initially attempted to douse the fire with buckets of water, unaware that it would turn into a massive blaze, losing the critical ‘golden hour’ when evacuation could have been possible.
The fire broke out at the house of businessman Manoj Pugliya in Brajeshwari Annex in the early hours of Wednesday.
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Preliminary investigation suggests the family underestimated the severity of the fire. Instead of evacuating immediately, they spent crucial time trying to control it. By the time they realised the danger, all exit routes were blocked. Dense smoke filled the house, causing children on the first floor to lose their way and suffocate within minutes.
BURNING HOUSE
The house layout and intensity of the heat turned it into a death trap. There were 10 LPG cylinders in the house, two of which exploded. The refrigerator compressor also burst, intensifying the fire.
On the ground floor, Vijay and his wife Suman were trapped in a room where the iron door became red-hot, preventing escape.
On the first floor, Saurabh, Somil, Harshit and their mother Sunita escaped through the balcony. However, Ruchika, her daughter Rashi, son Tanay and cousin Kartik were trapped in the rear portion with no escape route and were engulfed by flames.
On the terrace, Manoj and Simran tried to escape, but a channel gate jammed, possibly due to heat expansion, leaving them trapped on the staircase.
Police have received the post-mortem reports of all eight victims. The reports indicate that the victims died due to asphyxiation caused by dense smoke before being burnt.
In a particularly distressing case, the remains of seven-year-old Tanay were severely charred. Only fragments could be recovered and have been sent for DNA testing to confirm identity.
Tilak Nagar police station in-charge Manish Lodha said, “Post-mortem reports confirm suffocation and burns as the cause of death. We are treating a short circuit as the primary cause based on digital evidence. Further investigation is under way to determine whether it was due to an electrical overload or a technical fault.”
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