Varkala: The fire and rescue team which rushed to save the lives of a family trapped in a house-fire here on Tuesday was greeted by an untoward sight.
Nihul, the youngest son in the family, was resting on the flight of stairs with third-degree burns. He lost consciousness after informing them that his wife and child were upstairs.
It is likely that Nihul suffered the burns while rushing downstairs to inspect the fire.
While boarding the ambulance, his only concern was the family he left behind, eye-witnesses said.
Five members of a family were charred to death in a fire at Rahul Nivas in Dalavapuram near Cherunniyoor Block Office, Varkala at around 1.45 am.
The deceased are Prathapan, 62, wife Sherly, 53, daughter-in-law Abhirami, 25, her eight-month-old son Riyan and Prathapan's younger son Ahil, 29. Nihul has been admitted the hospital with serious burn injuries.
The neighbours had called Nihul, when they saw the bikes getting gutted in the fire at the car porch of the house. Nihul, who was oblivious of the development till that point, asked them from where the fire erupted. He disconnected the phone when he was told that the fire had come up from the front side. When he was called after two minutes, he did not pick up the call.
Later Nihul was shifted out through the backside of the house as the Fire and Rescue Department and the local people began rescue operations.
During the rescue operations, Nihul's wife Abhirami and child were found dead inside a toilet on the first floor of the house. Akhil was lying on a bed in the nearby room.
Prathapan and wife Sherly were found dead in a room on the ground floor. They had sustained only minor burns.
Air conditioners made the rooms sound-proof, says maid
Meanwhile, the family's housemaid Mini told the media that there were no family issues or unusual incidents that occurred in the family recently. She said that a strong locking system was in place in each room in the house.
“All rooms had air conditioners and all noise from outside was drowned out when the AC functioned. Many a time, I called the family members on phone and requested them to open the door,” she said.
Sabotage ruled out
Preliminary reports are pointing to the fact that there is no sabotage involved in the fire. IG of Police R Nishanthini has said that there are no doubts as of now about any sabotage, adding that the investigation by various agencies is going on.
The exact cause can be ascertained only after getting a statement from Nihul, the police said.
The Fireforce Technical Director said that more inspections should be carried out at the site to confirm whether the fire was caused due to a short circuit All five members of the family died after inhaling the smoke. They did not suffer serious burn injuries. The television, fans, curtains at the hall, and sofa sets were all gutted in the fire.
The Fireforce personnel, the forensic team, and the KSEB officials conducted inspections at the house. The District Collector said that only after receiving the report, the real reason for the incident can be deciphered.
