Five-year-old girl burnt to death as shanties catch fire in Ghaziabad

Five-year-old Sheetal was charred to death while her one-and-a-half-year-old sister Kashish suffered injuries in the fire. She was rushed to a hospital for treatment and is currently stable

A five-year-old girl was burnt to death while her one-and-a-half-year-old sister suffered burns when several shanties in Muradnagar’s Surana caught fire on Tuesday afternoon. Officials said the fire started after sparks from a high-tension electricity cable fell on the shanties.

Police officers at the spot where the girl died in the fire in Ghaziabad on Tuesday. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

The fire department received a call about the incident at 2.07pm and dispatched three fire tenders to the spot to douse the blaze, while the police also arrived and helped evacuate people from the shanties.

“During the incident, five-year-old Sheetal died from burns and was charred to death. Her younger sister Kashish suffered injuries in the fire. She was rushed to a hospital for treatment and is currently stable. There were eight shanties at the spot, of which four caught on fire,” said Naresh Kumar, assistant commissioner of police (Masuri).

Fire department officials said one fire tender was sent to the spot each from Modinagar, Muradnagar and the Ordnance Factory.

“Four shanties were built below a high-tension electricity feeder line passing through the area. High winds in the afternoon caused sparks in the cables, which fell on the shanties, starting the fire,” said Rahul Pal, chief fire officer.

Officials said that most of the residents in the shanties were daily wagers, who were out at work at the time, and only women and children were at home.

In a similar incident on Monday, a mother and daughter, aged 74 and 42, died in a fire at a house in Loni’s Lal Bagh Colony in Ghaziabad. The police suspect the fire was caused by an electrical short-circuit on the ground floor where there was a stock of banquet tents and decorations.