Thiruvananthapuram: Family killed as fridge blows up

Thiruvananthapuram: A three-member family was found dead in their rented house on Thursday in a suspected case of asphyxiation caused by fumes from a burnt fridge. The deceased were identified as Anil Raj, 40,  wife Arunima, 32,  and their daughter Aneesha  of  Kuzhikkada, Maruthoor near Mannanthala. Since the family was not seen outside for two days, the neighbours knocked at their door. With no response, they informed the police who  found the  bodies.

The fridge in the house was  burnt  and a wall of poorly ventilated room had turned black. Police suspect it to be a case caused by poisonous fumes. “We  felt  irritated and dizzy by the smell of gases in the house. Doctors who conducted the autopsy said it  seemed to be a case of carbon monoxide poisoning,” said Peroorkada Circle Inspector B. Pankajakshan.

Aruna

The bodies of Anil and Arunima were found  on the floor and that of Anisha  on the cot. Anil and his wife were employed as lab technicians in an institution inside Mar Ivanious Vidyanagar. They originally hailed from Grace Cottage, Paruthivila, Dhanuvachapuram.

Senior police officers, including Commissioner Sparjan Kumar and DCP G. Sivavikram,  visited the spot. Forensics teams and electrical inspectorate officials collected evidence from the spot. The bodies were sent to Medical College Hospital for autopsy. The funeral was held at Dhanuvachapuram.

Fridge can be a ticking bomb

 

The fridge which generally stays switched on all the time has the potential to be the most dangerous of all electrical appliances in a house, say experts.   Apart from the refrigerant in the compressor, the abundance of plastic components for insulation makes fridges all the more lethal.   As per electrical inspectorate officials who were probing the case of a fridge burst in capital city on Thursday, there was no sign of a short circuit in the house and the fridge evidently seemed to have a fault.

“The compressor at  the bottom did not explode but the top portion got burnt. We are consulting  the refrigerator manufacturers to see what went wrong though our primary job is to rule out short circuit,” said Deputy Electrical Inspector N. Rajendran. Police experts believe that the hoses that circulate gases had  burnt off killing the family. “The family seemed to be fast asleep and would have gone unconscious by the fume. Death might have happened in sleep.

Our officers could not get into the house due to a strange smell of gases,” said Peroorkada Circle Inspector B. Pankajakshan. Officials said that it was  ideal to keep fridges in ventilated atmosphere. Periodic cleaning and caution on odd sounds can minimise the chances of a mishap, electrical inspectorate officials said.