Six of a family die as fire guts home above their shop in Dharashiv on Diwali night

Six members of a family died when a fire swept through their home above a grocery shop in Maharashtra’s Dharashiv district on Diwali night, officials said on 9 November.

Officials named four of the dead as Uttam Trimbak Karande, 75, Chandrakala Uttam Karande, 70, Govind Uttam Karande, 47, and Jyoti Govind Karande, 42. Two teenage girls of the family also died. A teenager from the family survived, Dharashiv MP Omraje Nimbalkar said.

The family lived on the first floor of the building and ran their shop on the ground floor. Most of those who died were overcome by the thick smoke that quickly filled the building, villagers said.

The cause

Mr. Nimbalkar said the fire appeared to have been started by a traditional oil lamp lit for Diwali. Firefighters brought the blaze under control at about 5 a.m. on 9 November. All six bodies were taken to the Dharashiv Government Hospital.

Complaints about the response

Villagers said the fire engine had to come from Umargaon, some distance away, and arrived late. One villager told The Indian Express that when it came, it had no fuel. “Had the fire brigade come on time, some lives could have been saved,” the villager said. A response from the fire service was not available.

The fire was one of several deadly house fires on Diwali night. In Madhya Pradesh, fires in two homes in Katni and Seoni districts killed 12 people.