Man rescues wife, kids; perishes in burning car

According to police, the incident took place close to Madukkarai toll plaza. Kumar and his wife Asha (35), with their children Yesu (13) and daughter Yethai (11), were on their way to Kumar’s brother S Ashok’s house in Kochi. As they were about to reach the toll plaza around 1.50 am, their car stopped.

Despite repeated attempts by Kumar, the car would not start and by then smoke had begun to emanate from the engine. He asked his wife and kids to step out and by that time a fire broke out. Police said that the man was unable to unbuckle the seat belt and hence couldn’t escape to safety.

The Fire and Rescue Services Personnel reached half an hour later and could finally bring the situation under control by 3 am. Kumar’s remains were taken to the CMCH for post-mortem. Madukkarai police registered a case under section 304 (A) of the IPC. Officials claim that a short circuit could have caused the mishap.