Mother and Son Perish in Barn Blaze in Jharkhand's Giridih

Giridih, Dec 20 (NationPress) A heartbreaking fire incident resulted in the deaths of a mother and her 12-year-old son in Jilimtand village, Dumri block, Giridih district, Jharkhand, as reported by the police.

The fire broke out late Thursday night, consuming their makeshift straw hut. The authorities later recovered their charred remains and sent them for a post-mortem examination.

The deceased were identified as Nuniya Devi and her son Babuchand Murmu, who were sleeping in a temporary shelter within a paddy barn. To keep warm, they had lit a wood fire nearby, but the flames unexpectedly spread to the straw hut.

Trapped inside, they were unable to escape, and their cries for help went unnoticed by the local villagers.

Somra Murmu, Nuniya Devi's husband, promptly informed the villagers about the fire and contacted the police.

Officers from the Dumri police station arrived on the scene Friday morning, extinguished the fire, and retrieved the bodies.

According to Dumri police station in-charge Jagannath Pan, villagers labeled the incident as an accident, although an investigation is currently underway.

Dumri MLA Jairam Mahato visited the site to express his condolences to the grieving family. He pledged support and urged the district administration to offer compensation to the affected family and address the damages caused by the fire.

He has requested a compensation of Rs 4 lakh for the victims' relatives from the government.

The village has been enveloped in sorrow following the news of the tragic deaths of Nuniya Devi and Babuchand Murmu.

This unfortunate incident underscores a troubling trend of barn fires in Jharkhand. Just two days prior, on December 18, a fire in Vishwaskhani village, Mahagama block, Godda district, destroyed paddy crops across three acres.

Similar fire incidents have been reported in Jharpo, Tatijharia block, Hazaribagh district, and Chakla village, Ormanjhi police station area, Ranchi district, in the past week.