Three sisters, all minors, die in Noida house fire, father critical

The five members of the family were sleeping in the ten by seven feet room with a cooler, fridge and TV plugged in. The e-rickshaw battery was also in the room, police said

Three sisters -- all minors -- were killed and their parents suffered burn injuries after a fire broke out at their residence in Sector 8, Noida, early Wednesday morning, police officers and fire department officials said, adding that the fire appeared to have been triggered by a short-circuit, but further investigation is underway.

The one-room house where the family lived in Sector 8, Noida, was completely gutted in the fire on Tuesday night. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

While the father suffered severe burns and is in a critical condition, their mother sustained minor injuries to her limbs and is stable, police said, quoting doctors.

Rambadan Singh, deputy commissioner of police, Noida, said the fire brigade was alerted about the blaze around 3.30am by a neighbour.

Police said Police said the family —Daulat Ram (32), his wife Meenu, their three daughters Astha, 10, Naina, 7, and Aradhana, 5 , and 12-year-old son Abhi — lived in a one room house on the first floor.

“All of them, except Abhi who slept at his aunt’s house on Tuesday night, were asleep in the room when the fire broke out. One of the neighbours informed the fire station, following which teams immediately reached the spot. As the fire was brought under control, four people — Daulat Ram and his three daughters Astha, Naina, and Aradhana —were rushed to the hospital where the three young girls were declared dead on arrival,” DCP Singh.

The girls’ mother Meenu was given first-aid at the district hospital as she suffered only minor burns, the DCP said.

“The house was completely charred,” he added.

“Daulat Ram drives an e-rickshaw for a living. He suffered around 60% burn injuries and was referred to Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi. He is currently in the intensive care unit (ICU) while his wife, Meenu, sustained minor burn injuries to her hands and legs,” Singh said, adding that the family hails from Mainpuri and was living on rent in Noida.

The five members of the family were sleeping in the ten by seven feet room with a cooler, fridge and TV plugged in. The e-rickshaw battery was also in the room, police said.

Noida chief fire officer Pradeep Kumar Chaubey said while the exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, it is suspected that a short circuit led to the fire.

“A preliminary investigation has found that the fire broke out due to a short-circuit. When firefighters reached the spot, they found a cooler, fridge, television and e-rickshaw battery in the room. At the time of taking Daulat Ram to the hospital, he was conscious and when officials asked him whether he was charging the battery, he denied it. Hence, we believe that while the battery was not plugged in, the other appliances may have caused a short-circuit,” said Chaubey.

He further said that when the fire broke out, a neighbour rushed to the nearest fire service station on a bicycle to inform the fire service unit.

“The fire service unit did not receive a call about the fire, rather, a resident of the colony rushed on his cycle to the Phase-1 fire station, which is about a kilometre away, to alert us. Three fire tenders were rushed to the spot,” said the officer.

According to Amit Kumar, station house officer of Phase-1 police station, while parents were sleeping right next to the main door of the one-room house on a mat, the three girls were sleeping on the bed, beside which the e-rickshaw battery was kept.

“When the fire broke out, Ram rushed his wife downstairs as they were near the door. He rushed back up to save his daughters and sustained severe burn injuries in the process. Two of the girls died on the spot, while the third was alive when police rescued her. But doctors declared her dead on arrival,” said SHO Kumar.

“We woke up to Daulat Ram and his wife’s cries and saw huge flames leaping from their house. We rushed with water cans and tried our best to douse the fire, until the fire service unit came,” said Suneel, Daulat Ram’s neighbour.

“No complaint has been received in the matter. The girls’ autopsies were carried out following which the bodies were handed over to the family. Daulat Ram is still under treatment,” said the SHO.