Two persons, including a woman, died in a fire that broke out at a residential building in central Delhi's West Patel Nagar area today.
The deceased persons have been identified as Rinku (38) and Sneha (30). Rinku was the owner of the four-storey building and lived on the ground floor, from where the fire originated, said police.
While Rinku, who was stuck in his room, was charred to death, Sneha, who lived in the second floor as a tenant, died of asphyxia, said police.
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Rinku survived a severe accident several years ago with a brain injury which turned him mentally unstable, said a police official privy to the investigation.
He often used to collect discarded items randomly from the road and junk yards around the colony, and gather them at his house.
Today's fire is suspected to have originated from the heap of discarded materials stuffed at a room in the ground floor of the building, said the official.
Within few minutes, the smoke filled the entire building and the tenant, Sneha, is suspected to have choked and turned unconscious, while the other residents managed to evacuate the building.
The fire was reported around 8.30 AM and three fire tenders were rushed to the spot. Teams of police and Delhi Disaster Managament Authority followed, said a senior government official.
A rescue operation was launched and Sneha was rushed to a hospital where she later died. Rinku could not be rescued, said police.
The fire was doused in around 45 minutes, after which a cooling operation was launched by the fire department, said a fire official.
A case under relevant sections of law has been registered against unknown persons and investigation is underway, police added.
