Durgapur: At least four minors suffered from severe burn injuries after a mishap took place in the Kanksha Rice Mill here in West Bengal on Wednesday around 3 pm, officials said.
According to officials, an old Bolero car was parked in the Kawaripatti area, and the minors, including two boys and two girls, were playing with the car. In the meantime, they hid under the bonnet of the car as there was no engine, and suddenly the car caught fire, sources added.
At that moment, two children were caught by fire while the other two tried to get out of the place but got trapped, the locals said. Some of the residents rushed to the spot and somehow managed to rescue them from the danger, they added.
Soon after the incident, two children were immediately admitted to Durgapur Subdistrict Hospital in critical condition, whereas the rest two were taken to a private hospital in Bidhannagar, they said. According to sources, the victims are between 6 and 8 years old and are residents of Panagarh Rice Mill Road.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) of Kanksha, Suman Kumar Jaiswal, said, "An investigation has been started to find out if there is any other reason behind the mishap."
According to Jitendra Paswan, a panchayat member, "Children used to play under the bonnet of an old Bolero almost every day. But today fire suddenly broke out."
"We admitted them to the hospital. However, it is not yet known to whom the car belongs. Police are investigating it," he added.
