Indore: 8 Dead in Fire After EV Charging Point Explodes Outside Home
Cooking gas cylinders inside the house also exploded due to the impact, further intensifying the blaze, the police commissioner Santosh Kumar Singh said.
Bhopal: Eight members of a family were early on Wednesday morning charred to death when a massive fire, triggered by sparks at the electric car charging point, broke out in a three-storied house in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore, police said.
Three others were rescued alive and admitted to the local hospital.
The eight slain people included two children and two women, commissioner of police, Indore, Santosh Singh said.
The incident occurred at around 3.30 am.
Preliminary investigations suggested that the sparks at the charging point of the electric car, parked near the house, caused the fire which spread in the house in no time.
There was an explosion at the charging point and the fire in the car then engulfed the building, Mr. Singh said.
The blaze intensified after a series of explosions of the LPG (liquified petroleum gas) cylinders in the house, he added.
The victims were trapped inside the house when the digital locks fitted to the doors of the rooms did not unlock due to the power failure, according to the police.
The deceased were identified as Tanmay (6), Rashi Sethia (12), Simran (30), Tinu (35), Suman Sethia (60), Chhotu Sethia (22), Vijay Sethia (65) and Manoj (65), police said.
State urban development minister Kailash Vijayvargiya who visited the mishap site said that the incident has raised concerns since it occurred when the electric vehicle was being charged.
Mr. Viajyavargiya said that he has asked the local police and the administration to constitute a committee of experts to probe the incident.
He indicated that the state government may come out with a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for charging of electric vehicles in the wake of the tragic incident.
A SOP is imperative considering the growing interest in the electronic vehicles in the country, he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his deep grief and pains at the loss of lives in the incident.
In a post on X, he announced that an ex-gratia of Rs two lakh from the PMNRF (Prime Minister Natural Relief Fund) would be given to the next kin of the deceased and the injured would be given Rs 50,000.
Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav described the incident as heartbreaking.
In a late evening development, chief minister Yadav ordered an 'intensive investigation' into the fire tragedy in Indore.
In a statement issued here, Mr. Yadav said that "Considering the seriousness of the accident in Indore caused by an electric car charging, instructions have been issued for an intensive investigation".
Officials and experts have also been dispatched to Indore.
Mr. Yadav stated that the incident involving a digital lock and electric car charging highlights new challenges emerging from evolving technologies and their usage. The state government will work towards preventing such incidents and creating awareness to ensure that such incidents do not recur.
