Bhopal: Six members of a family were killed after a fire broke out at a plastic goods and wholesale shop in the Barhi area of Madhya Pradesh’s Katni district on Diwali night on Sunday.
The six were trapped in the upper floors of the building after the shop on the ground floor caught fire, the police said.
The six victims included two elderly individuals, both around 70 years of age, one woman, and three young children, sub-divisional officer of police (SDOP) Virendra Narve said.
“There was a shop belonging to Puran Lal Agrawal. The ground floor housed a plastic-related unit, while the upper floor served as his residence. A fire broke out there, resulting in a total of six deaths. The six victims include two elderly individuals, both around 70 years of age, one woman, and three young children,” he said, as reported by Republic TV.
The exact cause of the fire was yet to be established and would be known after an investigation, the officer said.
“The cause of the fire remains unknown at this stage. It is speculated that it might have been triggered by a diya or perhaps a short circuit; however, the exact cause will only become clear following an investigation,” he said.
The rescue operation had been underway for around five and a half hours, with the active phase lasting between three and a half and four hours, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) official Vijayansh Chaudhary said. He confirmed that six bodies had been recovered.
“The rescue operation has been underway for about five and a half hours; the active phase itself has lasted between three and a half and four hours. The entire rescue operation has been carried out using fire brigade vehicles. No, there is no active fire. However, smoke is still rising, which is causing concern among the people; we are taking continuous measures to address these concerns so that the public does not face any distress. Six bodies have been confirmed as recovered,” Chaudhary said.