3 of family, including scribe, killed in refrigerator fire

The deceased include Prasanna (32), who was working as a reporter with News J channel, his wife Archana (28), a schoolteacher at a private school in East Tambaram and his mother Revathi (59). “The cooling gas in the fridge seems to have turned fatal for the three who had visibly inhaled poisonous gas, suspected to be a refrigerant (Freon), which leaked from the fridge,” an officer said.

Prasanna, who was married five years ago, was living with his family at Triplicane until recently. Seven months ago, his wife got a job in East Tambaram and they shifted to East Tambaram. 

Their housemaid Durga (45) from Chromepet who came to the house around 10.30 am, found the door locked and the newspaper and milk packet had not been picked up either. “Since the calling bell did not work, Durga tried to knock on the door but as soon as she touched it, she recoiled from the heat. She immediately alerted the neighbours who noticed smoke emanating from the house and alerted the cops,” an officer said.

Selaiyur police and Tambaram Fire and Rescue team arrived immediately and broke the door open. They found the three people lying dead in different areas. After initial investigation, the cops believe that the refrigerator might have caught fire and possibly exploded and the trio was killed after inhaling the fumes. 

Police said that the house windows were closed at the time of the fire, thus accelerating their deaths. “The whole house was filled with black smoke and the victims appeared to have tried to find a way to escape but failed to do so since there was no power,” the officer noted. The bodies were sent for post-mortem to Chromepet government hospital. Police have also registered a case.