Six members each of two families were killed in separate incidents of fire in Katni and Seoni districts of Madhya Pradesh during Diwali celebrations early on Monday, police said.
Soni’s neighbours tried to fight the flames using water buckets before firefighters arrived. The deceased were identified as Puran Agrawal (77), his wife Chandrakala (74), daughter-in-law Poonam, and granddaughters Arya (14), Anvi (6), and the infant, according to police. The fire broke out in a three-storey building, owned by Kundan Lal Soni (75), at 4.30 am in Chhapara town, according to police.
Two people managed to escape, an official said. Katni superintendent of police (SP) Abhinav Vishwakarma said the fire broke out on the upper floors, situated above a crockery shop. “Preliminary investigation and survivors informed police that a fire started from an earthen lamp kept near a coffee machine and later spread quickly through the house,” he said. Chhapara sub-divisional police officer Apoorv Bhalavi said it took firefighters several hours to bring the fire under control. Police said the cause of the fire is yet to be determined.
Meanwhile, a second fire broke out at a gold trader’s house in Seoni, killing six members of his family.
