2 charred to death, 1 injured after ambulance catches fire in Delhi

Two men were charred to death and another sustained critical injuries after an ambulance they were sleeping in caught fire early on Tuesday in south Delhi’s Sheikh Sarai area, police and fire department officials said.

Chief fire officer of Delhi Fire Service Atul Garg said a call reporting the incident was received at 12.55am.

“The cause of the fire is suspected to be a coil or a cigarette but it is yet to be ascertained. The engine of the ambulance wasn’t on at the time of fire, preliminary probe suggests,” Garg said.

The dead men have been identified as Rahul, 24, a resident of Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh, and 25-year-old Guddu from Delhi’s Khanpur.

Deputy commissioner of police (south) Romil Baaniya said the call regarding the fire was received at Malviya Nagar police station.

“A police team that arrived on the spot found two person, namely Rahul and Guddu, dead in a burnt condition inside the ambulance. The third identified as Subodh Kumar (40) was admitted to Safdarjung Hospital’s burn unit. He has sustained critical burns and is unfit for statement,” Baaniya said.

He added that all the three men were employees of Rana Ambulance Services.

Baaniya said forensics teams have been requested to inspect the spot and find the cause of fire, he said. A case of causing death due to negligence has been registered at Malviya Nagar police station and the matter is being probed, he added.