At least seven persons, including a three-year-old boy and two women, died as fire engulfed a private hospital in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, on the night of Thursday, December 12. According to reports, five of the deceased were trapped in the lift of the hospital during the fire and suffocated. As many as 32 persons are admitted at the Dindigul Government Hospital, of whom three are on ventilator support.
The deceased are identified as Suruli (50) and his wife Subbulakshmi (45), Mariammal (50) and her son Manimurugan (28), Rajashekar (35), and a girl child who is yet to be identified.
The fire is suspected to have been started off by an electric short circuit.