Dibrugarh: Five members of a family including two children were charred to death when a cooking gas cylinder burst triggering fire at their house in Dibrugarh district of upper Assam, police said on Saturday.
The incident occurred at Niz Kodomoni near Thermal Colony in Dibrugarh town, district Additional Superintendent of Police Dhruba Bora said.
The cooking gas cylinder in their hut near the railway tracks burst around 1.30 am on Saturday when they were sleeping, he said, adding that they were “burnt to death at the spot” after the fire engulfed their house.
The deceased were identified as Maya Sonar (50), Bishal Sonar (19), Shib Sonar (5), Shankar Sonar (3), Nunu (50), the ASP said. The bodies have been sent for post mortem examination.
The fire damaged the hut completely and their belongings, Bora said. Ruling out any sabotage leading to the fire, Bora said senior police personnel and officials of the district administration reached the spot and initiated a preliminary investigation.
Expressing his condolence to the relatives of the deceased, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal directed the district Deputy Commissioner of police to conduct an enquiry into the incident.
The state government announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased.
CM condolence
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal expressed his condolences over the tragic incident in which five members of a family died in a cylinder explosion at Kadamani in Dibrugarh district on Saturday.
He also ordered an inquiry into the incident and asked Deputy Commissioner Dibrugarh to carry out the inquiry. Sonowal also asked the Deputy Commissioner of Dibrugarh to extend all help to the affected and announced ex-gratia of Rs. 4 lakh to the next of the kin of the deceased.
