Chennai: A 27-year-old woman and her two-year-old child died of burns after her saree accidentally caught fire at her residence in Kalpakkam, 70 km from the city on Sunday. The woman's three-year-old son is undergoing treatment for burn injuries, police said.
The deceased were identified as Amala (27) and her youngest son, Deepan (2).
The child went and hugged his mother after she was engulfed in fire. Preliminary investigations suggested that the woman's saree caught fire while she was in the kitchen. Her two children Geethan (3) and Deepan ran towards her and they too suffered burn injuries. Neighbours rushed to their aid on hearing the woman's screams and moved the injured to the Chengelpet Government Hospital where the woman and her youngest child were declared brought dead. The three-year-old boy was moved to the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital for further treatment.
The deceased woman was married to one, Raja (32) of Vayalur near Kalpakkam, employed as a contract worker at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) there. Raja was not at the house when the accident happened.
