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Kushinagar Inferno: Four minor girls among seven of a family burnt to death after fire engulfs house
While the woman and four of her daughters died on the spot, her eldest daughter (eight years old) was somehow rescued by the police.
GORAKHPUR In a heart-wrenching incident, seven members of a family -- including four minor girls, their mother, and grandparents -- were burnt alive after a massive fire engulfed their entire house. The incident took place in Maghi Mathi village under Ramkola town of Kushinagar district on Wednesday afternoon when the victims were taking a siesta.
While the woman and four of her daughters died on the spot, her eldest daughter (eight years old) was somehow rescued by the police. The elderly couple, who were rushed to a local hospital in a critical condition, succumbed to their burn injuries during treatment.
The cause behind the fire is yet to be ascertained but locals said that the clay oven was not properly doused after preparing food. Raging flames triggered panic among villagers, who informed firefighters. According to locals, firefighters did not reach the spot in time. However, district magistrate Kushinagar, Ramesh Ranjan, along with SP Dhawal Jaiswal, rushed to the spot. Senior police officials supervised the rescue operation.
Taking cognisance of the tragedy, chief minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the incident and announced ₹4 lakh ex-gratia for each of the deceased. The amount will be given to the next of kin. The CM directed the officials to provide all assistance to members of the deceased family.
Following the incident, DIG Gorakhpur, J Ravindra Gour, confirmed that the victims have been identified as -- Rukaiya (6), Amna (4), Ayesha (2), Khadija (2 months), their mother Fatima (30), and grandparents Moti Rani (66), and Shafeeq (72). The only one to survive the inferno was Kulsum (8). According to SP Jaiswal, an inquiry had been initiated to identify the reason behind the fire.
Officials said that the father of the victim girls, Shohrat, is an auto driver. He was in the market when the incident took place. According to Shohrat, flames trapped his family members and prevented their way out.
