Six members of one family, including three children and a two-month-old infant, were killed after a massive fire gutted a three-storey residential-cum-commercial building in Barhi town of Madhya Pradesh’s Katni district on Diwali night. The deceased included an elderly couple and three children, including the infant

The fire broke out on the ground-floor shop of a trader in Katni and spread to the upper residential floors, trapping the family. Faced with angry residents, Katni Collector Ashish Tiwari apologised to the victims’ family and residents, acknowledging that the administration could not save the six lives despite deploying four fire tenders.

“Despite four fire brigade vehicles being at the spot, the six lives could not be saved. I apologise for it. Despite the fire tenders and rescue teams being on the ground, due to some reasons, the lives could not be saved,” Tiwari said.