The victims were identified as Punit Yadav (33), his wife Sakho Devi (33) and 42-year-old Dinanath alias Dinesh Yadav. Punit and Sakho Devi had six children while Dinesh Yadav, one of their distant relatives, had four. The families lived next to each other in the same neighbourhood.
The incident occurred when Punit slipped into the septic tank while attempting to retrieve an iron chisel that had fallen into it during repair work. Sakho and Dinesh also fell into the tank while trying to rescue him as he began to drown.
Shatrughan Kumar, a local and representative of the mukhiya of Chandpur panchayat under Jagdishpur block, who rushed to the spot after hearing about the incident, said, “All three died within 15 minutes of the incident. Unfortunately, they were suffocated by the toxic gas accumulated inside the septic tank and the low oxygen levels before anyone could reach them.”
Despite efforts by family members, neighbours and others to rescue the three, they were unable to save them. The bodies of the deceased were retrieved with the help of locals and family members. “The police team from Jagdishpur is investigating the incident. All three were poor workers who earned their living on a daily wage,” added Shatrughan Kumar.
Probationer DSP and in-charge SHO of Jagdishpur PS, Vishal Anand, confirmed that the cause of death was asphyxiation inside the septic tank. “The bodies were sent for postmortem. We are investigating the incident,” Anand added.
#Tragic #Asphyxiation #Incident #Family #Dies #Bhagalpur #Septic #Tank #Patna #News #Times #India