Man dies of suffocation as mattress catches fire

A 40-year-old man died of suffocation at his house after a mattress caught fire when he and his brother were apparently under the influence of narcotics, the city police said today.
The incident took place in a flat at Shriram Bhuvan Building, Kurla West, at around 11 last night, police said.
Pradeep Shivkumar Shukla (40) and his brother Sudeep (35) were apparently under the influence of charas and marijuana when one of them lighted a cigarette which fell on the mattresses, causing a small fire.
The duo could not run out of the house as both were high, and fell unconscious as the room was filed with smoke.

Neighbours alerted police and the fire brigade.
When police entered the flat, they found both of them unconscious. Pradeep was declared dead before admission at the hospital whereas Sudeep was undergoing treatment.
An accidental death report was registered at the Kurla police station.