Woman, three kids die in Haripur inferno

HARIPUR: A woman and three minor children were burnt to death in the limits of Tarbela dam residential colony when a fire erupted in a room, police and witnesses said here on Friday.

The police said that short-circuiting caused the fire. They said Muhammad Shehzad, a clerk at the T-5 project of Tarbela Dam, went to his office in the morning, leaving his wife, two minor sons and one of their cousins sleeping in their room in Shobra City Colony of Tarbela dam. At around 11am, the police and the Sohbra City Colony’s management received information about the fire incident and the fire extinguishing vehicles were sent to the scene but the fire was so severe that all the inmates died.

The police officials said the circumstantial evidence indicated that short-circuiting as the cause and the family fell unconscious when the room was filled with smoke and later the fire engulfed the entire room, burning the inmates beyond recognition. Assistant Commissioner Dr Abdul Wahid supervised the rescue operation and shifted the bodies to Tehsil Headquarters Hospital. Those who died were identified as Nagina, 26, her sons Ayan, 5, Hamdan, 3, and children’s maternal cousin Hurriya, 10.