Three of family, including 80-year-old woman, dead, four injured in fire in building in Latur

"The fire spread to the upper floors. Three persons, including an octogenarian, who were coming down from the third floor got caught in the thick smoke that had engulfed the staircase area and died of suffocation," he said.

Latur:Three persons, including two women, from a family died after a fire broke out in a building in Latur in Maharashtra on Thursday, while four jumped out of the second floor of the structure to save themselves, officials said.

The fire took place in four-storeyed 'Shivai' building near Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Chowk at 8:30am, possibly due to a short-circuit in a flower shop on the ground floor, an official said. "The fire spread to the upper floors. Three persons, including an octogenarian, who were coming down from the third floor got caught in the thick smoke that had engulfed the staircase area and died of suffocation," he said.

"Four persons living on the second floor tied sarees and jumped onto the gallery of the building, in the process sustaining injuries. They have been hospitalised," he added. Personnel from the fire brigade broke the door of the first floor, where they found the bodies of Kusum Londhe (80), Sunil Londhe (58) and Pramila Londhe (50), and later extinguished the blaze, he said.

"The fire started on the ground floor possibly due to a short circuit and the blaze spread to the upper floors. Three people died due to suffocation," fire department chief Subhash Kadam said.