At least two children died in a devastating fire that erupted in a hut situated at Kotra-Santu village, Premnagar, Dehradun on Monday. Two fire tenders went to the incident site and the blaze was extinguished after around half an hour of struggle with the flames by firemen.
The fire started spreading in adjacent house, engulfing the adjacent houses. It resulted in two cylinders kept in the house exploding with deafening thud.
The deceased have been identified as four-year-old Aslam and seven- year- old Akshar, sons of Nazir Hussain, native of Ballia (Uttar Pradesh). The bodies have been sent for postmortem. Police are investigating the case, said Premnagar police station officer Pramod Shah.
Police sources said all four elder members of the family having gone to market, two children left in the home started playing with a match box, resulting in the blaze. Both the children died on the spot, charred in the flames.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat has expressed grief over the tragic incident. He has directed DM, Dehradun, to give financial assistance to the bereaved family.