Four siblings among five burnt to death

LAHORE:Four children and a man died and three others were injured in three different fire incidents here on Friday.

Four siblings were burnt to death when their house caught fire due to gas cylinder blast in the Ichhra area. The fire broke out on the fifth floor of a residential building near Chowk Baba Azam, Ichhra, as a result of which, four siblings aged between 2 and 12 were burnt to death. On being informed, the firefighters rushed to the scene, extinguished the fire and pulled out four bodies.

Rescue sources said that the blast took place at around 6am in a house when all family members were in a room and turned on the heater which was connected to a cylinder. The house also caught fire and suffered extensive damage. The cause of the blast and subsequent fire was believed to be leakage in the gas cylinder, neighbours added.

The victims were identified as Eman Fatima, 12, Noor Fatima, 8, Ibrahim, 5, and Ismail, 2, children of Abbas. In another incident, a 66-year-old man was burnt when a sudden fire broke out in his room in Punjab University Town Phase-2. The deceased was identified as Mushtaq, son of Shafi.

Meanwhile, three people were injured when their house caught fire following an explosion of a gas cylinder in the Green Town area. The injured were identified as Jahanzeb, 40, son of Gul Khan, Hussain, 10 and Binyamin, 12, sons of Jahanzeb. The injured were admitted to the Jinnah Hospital.

Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi has expressed his deep grief over the incident. The CM ordered an inquiry into the incident, seeking a detailed report.Provincial Minister for Information Amir Mir met with the heirs of the deceased in Icchra and expressed deep grief. He apprised that the police teams were investigating the incident from every aspect. Provincial Minister for Housing Azfar Ali Nasir and Commissioner Lahore Muhammad Ali Randhawa also accompanied Amir Mir on the occasion. Commissioner apprised that all the admin officers were present at the incident site and were in constant contact with the affected family.

26 die in road accidents in 24 hours

The Emergency Services Department (ESD) responded to 910 road traffic accidents in all districts of Punjab during the last 24 hours. In these accidents, 26 people died, whereas 928 were injured. Out of these, 404 people with serious injuries were shifted to different hospitals, while 524 victims with minor injuries were treated on the spot by Rescue medical teams.

Man held for injuring his father by firing

Manga Mandi Investigation police arrested a man on charges of injuring his father by firing. The accused identified as Irfan had nurtured a grudge against his father who used to forbid him from using drugs. On the day of the incident, the victim had admonished him for using drugs, on which he shot at and injured him and escaped from the scene.

Found dead

A 30-year-old man was found dead near Panahgah, Data Darbar, on Friday. Police claimed that the man, yet to be identified, was an addict who might have died of cold weather. Edhi volunteers shifted the body to the mortuary.