A 38-year-old woman and her five children, aged between one and 10 years, died in a fire that broke out at their house in Uttar Pradesh's Kushinagar district, police said on Thursday.
The incident took place late Wednesday night in Urdha village, they said.
Sangeeta and her five children got trapped inside the house when the fire broke out while they were sleeping. After getting information about the incident, a fire brigade team reached the spot, doused the flames and pulled out the six family members who had already died, police said.
Sangeeta's children who died in the fire were identified as Babu (1), Geeta (2), Rita (3), Laxmina (9) and Ankit (10).
Prima facie, it appears that the fire started due to a short circuit and within a few seconds the LPG cylinder kept in the house also caught fire and it exploded, an official said.
At the time of the incident, the husband, his father and mother were sleeping outside while the wife along with her five children were sleeping inside the house.
Police said the fire, which was first noticed in the tin shed, soon spread to the entire house and the husband was not able to save his family.
After hearing the sound of explosion, Sangeeta's husband, his parents and the nearby people tried to save her and the children but they succumbed to burns.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the incident and directed the district officials to carry out prompt relief and rescue operations. He has also announced a compensation of Rs 4 lakh for each of the victims.
DM Ramesh Ranjan, who visited the spot, said the fire was so huge that no one inside the house could be saved.
Prima facie, it appears that the fire started due to a short circuit and later the gas cylinder in the house exploded. However, investigation is underway to find out the cause behind the fire, he said.
"The administration is providing all possible help to the victims and standing with them in their difficult time. The chief minister has announced Rs 4 lakh for each of the victims," the DM told reporters.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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