Patna woman & son die of asphyxiation

PATNA: In a tragic incident, a 34-year-old woman and her 7-year-old son died of asphyxiation after fire broke out in their house in Barh subdivision of Patna district late Monday night. The deceased were identified as Puja Devi, wife of Jairam Kumar and their son Shubham Kumar.
The fire broke out at Jairam's house at Gopkitta village under Pandarak police station area when the woman was asleep with her two kids. They got stuck inside their room as flames spread rapidly and the house was filled with smoke. Seeing the smoke bellowing from the house, the locals rushed to the spot and tried to douse the fire. With the help of the police, they broke open the window of the room and found the woman and her children unconscious.
SHO Praveen Singh said the victims were rushed to the hospital where doctors declared Puja and Shubham dead. "Their bodies were sent to Barh sub-divisional hospital for post-mortem. According to the primary post-mortem report, the cause of death was asphyxiation. The condition of her elder son Kallu Kumar (11) was critical. He was referred to a private hospital in Patna. Puja's husband works outside Bihar. He has been informed about the incident," the SHO said.
"At the time of the incident, only Puja and her children were at home. A farmer who was working in a nearby field saw the flames and raised an alarm. By the time, the locals informed the police, the room was completely filled with thick smoke. The cause of fire is yet to be ascertained. A case has been registered and police are investigating the case," the SHO said.