Woman dies in gas explosion at poorly ventilated house

A 52-year-old woman died shortly after a fire broke out at her parents’ home following a gas leak on Tuesday evening. The flames spread so far and so fast that they struck her aged parents, husband and brother who were all sitting in the living room, police said.

Chitravathi, from Yeshwantpur, was visiting her parents — Lakshmi Narayana, 88, and Sathyaprema, 78 — and brother Gurumurthy, 48, in Maruthi Nagar. Her husband and children had also come along.

Chitravathi went into the kitchen to make coffee but failed to notice the gas leak. The house is small and lacks proper ventilation. As soon as she lit the gas stove, a fire erupted and engulfed the entire house. Other members of the family sustained burn injuries while trying to douse the flames. They were all admitted to Victoria Hospital for treatment, a senior police officer said.