4 of family lock themselves in washroom, escape death

While revising for his third-year law exam, 26-year-old Hussain Kothari heard shouts of fire. Before he could react, the fire started spreading into one of his bedrooms.

Kothari, his father, mother and younger brother were admitted to Holy Spirit Hospital in Andheri (East) around 3.50 am. While three of the family are out of danger, his father Ibrahim Kothari, 57, is in ICU. All four suffered from suffocation.

“We first went inside the kitchen to get some fresh air, but we were not all able to breathe there. We later locked ourselves inside one of the washrooms and the ventilation in it helped us. We were coordinating with the society members on phone. The fire brigade managed to reach us after an hour,” said Hussain.

According to the doctors, the Kothari family suffered from suffocation. Dr Vijay Dalal, a consultant, said, “Due to suffocation, Ibrahim suffered from chest congestion. We need to observe him for at least 24 hours. In such cases, patients might have respiratory problems in future.”

Hussain said, “I was studying for my exam. The fire from the third floor of the building started spreading into my house on the fourth floor through one of the bedrooms. My brother was sleeping outside in the living room. We started pouring water and wet towels so that the fire does not spread to other rooms.”