Chennai: A 39-year-old man reportedly died of suffocation due to a fire in the bedroom triggered by a cigarette in his house on II cross street in Sripuram in St. Thomas Mount on Saturday night. Police identified the victim as Prabhu Francis.
“He was alone in his room as his wife, a software professional, had gone to her parents' house along with their two kids for a weekend visit. It appears he came drunk on Saturday night and slept with a burning cigarette in hand. The cigarette had triggered a fire in the bedsheet and the room got filled with smoke. The smoke had caused his suffocation and death. He also had some burn injuries on his body ,” police said.
Police said Prabhu, along with his father, owned a few buildings which they had given for rent. The rental income is the source of money for the family.
On Saturday night, at around 12.30 am, his father noticed smoke emanating from his son's room but when he tried to enter he found the room locked from inside. He then alerted fire and rescue service. A rescue team broke open the bedroom door and found Prabhu on the bed in the smoke-filled room. Though the firemen took him to Chromepet GH, the medical team there declared Prabhu dead on arrival.
