Three members of a family, including a woman, died after allegedly inhaling toxic fumes while attempting to retrieve illicit liquor hidden inside a septic tank in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh district, police said on Wednesday.
The incident took place in Kud village under Katkamdag police station limits on Tuesday night during a raid conducted on a tip-off about illicit liquor stored at the house, a senior police officer said.
The deceased were identified as Chameli Devi, 50, her son Ravi Kumar, 25, and her brother-in-law Madan Sao, 30.
"After the raid, the woman went to retrieve the hidden liquor from the septic tank and lost consciousness inside it. The other two then entered the tank to save her, but they also lost consciousness," Katkamdag Police Station officer in-charge Saroj Kumar said.
Preliminary investigation revealed that all three died of suspected asphyxiation while they were trying to retrieve 'Mohua' liquor from the septic tank.
The bodies of the deceased were taken out of the tank around 9 pm on Tuesday and sent for post-mortem examinations at the Sheikh Bhikhari Medical College and Hospital (SBMCH), he said.
The police have initiated a detailed investigation into the incident, the officer added.
(With inputs from PTI)