Ranchi: Six members of a family were charred to death after their hut caught fire in Madan Shahi village of Sauti Chowki Khuthari Busti in Sahibganj district on Thursday, police said.
Sources said 40-year-old Suresh Mandal, his wife Sutni Devi (35) and their two sons and two daughters were sleeping last night when they were engulfed in the fire, Superintendent of Police A B Ram said on Thursday. The incident occurred in the wee hours when the family was fast asleep.
The family members could not come out of the house which was filled with smoke caused by fire. The fire was triggered by a short circuit in the house, sources said.
A pall of gloom descended on the hamlet as soon as news of fire deaths spread in the locality. A relative of the family, Satyanarayan, informed the police about the incident in the morning.
Police have sent the bodies for post mortem examination. They said an investigation was on to find out the cause of the fire.
The SP ordered a probe into the incident to find out if any foul play was involved. He said so far the deaths appeared to be the result of accidental fire.
