3 of a family killed after fire breaks out in Agra building

Some people in the house came out when the blaze broke out, but three family members were trapped inside and suffocated to death.

Three people were killed when a fire broke out on Wednesday morning in a building in Agra in Uttar Pradesh, police said. The deceased persons included the building owner, his son and daughter.

The building that caught fire in Agra also housed a hospital on the ground floor. (PTI)

The building, located in the Shahganj area of the Taj city, also housed a hospital on the ground floor. The incident, prima facie caused by a short circuit in electric line, took place in the wee hours.

It is feared that foam mattresses stored in the building caught fire and the blaze soon spread. The son and daughter of the building owner were trapped in the fire. The building owner tried to save them but all three were suffocated to death, according primary information.

The deceased were identified as building owner, Rajan Kumar (42), his daughter Simran alias Shalu (18) and son Rishi (15). The hospital was known as R Madhuraj Hospital but was registered in the records of the health department in the name of Dr Ishu Verma.

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath expressed condolences on the deaths and directed the district magistrate and police officials to rush to the spot and ensure relief work and proper treatment to those injured.

“We received information that a fire broke out in a building. A family stayed on the first floor of the building. We are following the protocol,” a police officer was quoted as saying in a statement tweeted by the Agra Police.

“The fire is suspected to have been caused by a short circuit. Some people in the house came out when the blaze broke out, but three family members were trapped,” a police officer said.

Chief medical officer Dr AK Srivastava, following a visit to the hospital, clarified that deceased Rajan was not a doctor but was the owner of the premises and lived on the first floor. He had rented the ground floor to the hospital registered in the name of Dr Ishu Verma.

There were four patients in the hospital and one was admitted on Tuesday night. They were safe but three of them went back home following the incident. However, Rajrani, the wife of the building owner and her other son Luvy were undergoing treatment in a nearby hospital after being rescued.

“A proper inquiry is being conducted to find details about the registration of the hospital in residential premises,” said the CMO. Dr Srivastava said that the three deaths were because of suffocation.

Locals said the fire erupted at about 5am on Wednesday and the family called for help. Some locals entered the premises but could not save the trio.

Rajan Kumar worked in hospitals as a medical assistant. He lived with his father Gopi Chand, who first saw the fire and alerted other family members. Rajan Kumar moved out but had to return to save his son and daughter. However, all three were suffocated to death.