Cylinder explosion kills three of family in Howrah

Three members of a family, including a three-year-old boy were charred when a fire broke out in their house at Uluberia in Howrah on Tuesday afternoon.

According to an officer of the state fire and emergency services department, the fire broke out following explosion of the cooking gas cylinder. The tiled roof of the house was completely damaged and the flames threatened to spread to the adjacent houses. The adjacent houses were evacuated. Residents of the adjacent houses were found coming out with their valuables.

Local people saw the smoke billowing out and heard the cries of the three persons who were trapped in the house.

Fire fighters rushed to the spot soon after getting information and found some local people trying to douse the flames. But they were in a helpless situation and couldn’t enter the house despite hearing the victims’ cries. The fire fighters took around an hour to douse the flames and then entered the house to find the charred bodies of all three.

Other members of the house who went out for work, returned to the spot after getting the information. They identified the victims as Gayatri Ghosh (65), her daughter-in-law Mousumi Ghosh (35) and grandson Ayon Ghosh (3).

A pall of gloom descended in the area with the death of the three members of the family.

Manoj Saha, a neighbour, said that they had been staying in the house for the past thirty years. 

“Yesterday (Monday) evening, Mousumi told me that there was some problem in the cooking gas stove as they were getting pungent smell and had asked me to get a mechanic. But before I had called someone, a mechanic had come to their house and repaired the same stove. It seems that they didn’t realise that the problem with the cooking gas cylinder and stove was not solved and went to cook food for her son on Tuesday afternoon when the incident took place,” Saha said.

Police initiated a probe in this connection to ascertain whether there was any foul play. A police officer said that they had visited the spot and it didn’t seem to them that there was any foul play behind the incident. But a proper probe will be carried out to be sure about the exact reason behind the explosion of the cooking gas cylinder. Necessary steps would be taken against the supplier if any defect in the cylinder proves to the reason behind the death of the three persons, the officer said.