LPG Blast Destroys Hut in Shanmugapuram After Cigarette Sparks Fire

A family of four escaped unhurt on Monday evening when an LPG cylinder exploded and completely destroyed their hut on Kamarajar Street at Annai Indira Nagar in Shanmugapuram, near Ambattur and Avadi. The incident was allegedly triggered by a discarded lit cigarette inside the residence.

According to the Pudhur police, the hut was occupied by 25-year-old lorry driver Suriyamoorthy, his 22-year-old wife Uma Maheswari, and their two children. Police said Suriyamoorthy had allegedly consumed alcohol and was smoking inside the house. He is suspected to have thrown away a lit cigarette without properly extinguishing it.

The cigarette is believed to have ignited a piece of cloth kept near the LPG cylinder, triggering a fire inside the structure. Sensing the spreading blaze and smelling leaking gas, Uma Maheswari immediately alerted her husband and rushed the children out of the hut.

Moments after the family fled outside, the LPG cylinder exploded with a loud blast, reducing the hut to rubble. The impact of the blast cracked the walls of neighbouring houses and shattered window panes across the area.

Residents in the neighbourhood rushed to the spot and managed to contain the flames before personnel from the Fire and Rescue Services arrived. The Pudhur police have registered a case, and a further probe into the blast is currently underway.