Attibele blaze toll climbs to 17 as one more injured victim dies

A massive fire broke out in a firecracker godown in Attibele on October 7, killing 14 people and injuring four others, namely Naveen Reddy (38), Venkatesh (25), Rajesh (19), and Dinesh (20).

Bengaluru: The death toll in the Attibele firecracker blaze rose to 17 after another victim died early Wednesday morning.

Rajesh (19), an employee at the firecracker godown, who suffered 30-40% burns, succumbed to his injuries. He was critical in the intensive care unit since admission and was put on ventilator.

"He remained critical despite surgical intervention and skin grafting on October 10. His condition showed no signs of improvement and continued to deteriorate due to significant inhalational burns and infection," Dr Arvind Kasthuri, Chief of Medical Services, St John's Medical College Hospital, told DH.

The combination of his airway injuries, infection due to burns, and overall poor health led to multi-organ dysfunction, leading to a cardiac arrest, he said.

Rajesh was one of the injured in the massive fire that engulfed the godown in Attibele on October 7; 14 had died in the accident. Four others (including Rajesh) Naveen Reddy, 38, Venkatesh, 25, and Dinesh, 20, were injured.

Dinesh died in Victoria Hospital's burns ward on October 11, while Venkatesh succumbed to his injuries the next day at St John's Hospital.

Naveen, one of the five suspects named in the FIR, is undergoing treatment in the ward at St John's. He had suffered between 17% and 20% burns to parts of his face, upper body and back, but is stable. He is expected to be discharged soon, Dr Kasthuri said.