KANNUR: A pregnant woman and her husband were charred to death after the car in which they were travelling caught fire near the district hospital here around 10.45 am on Thursday. The deceased is T V Prajith, 35, and his wife K Reesha, 26, of Kuttiattoor.
Reesha’s father Viswanathan, mother Sobhana, daughter Sree Parvathi and cousin Sajana who was sitting in the rear seat escaped unhurt. Prajith, who was driving the car, stretched back and opened the back door but he could not open its front door. The incident occurred when Prajith was taking Reesha for medical consultation. It is learnt that the fire started from the gearbox portion. Local people present at the spot tried to open the door to rescue the couple but the front side of the car was immediately engulfed in fire.
“The couple were crying out for help. We tried to rescue them by breaking open the windowpanes, but we were unsuccessful. We could not do much as we feared that the petrol tank of the car would explode at any time,” said Nabeel, an eyewitness.
Though officials from the fire and rescue services rushed to the spot, all they could take out from the car was the charred bodies of the couple.
City police commissioner Ajith Kumar said a detailed investigation would be carried out. He said forensic experts examined the car and the reason for the accident would be ascertained only after a detailed probe.
Meanwhile, Motor Vehicle Department officials, who also reached the spot, said the reason for the fire might be an electric short circuit. “We will seek the opinion of experts. We can arrive at a conclusion only after assessing all angles,” said the commissioner.
Prajith was a construction contractor. The couple’s daughter Sree Parvathi is a class III student of KAKNS School, Kuttiattoor. The funeral of the couple was held at Kuttiattoor in the evening.