Two persons, including a girl (8), were killed and two others sustained injuries when a barn caught fire due to a suspected LPG cylinder blast in Muradnagar area here this afternoon, police said.
The deceased were identified as Sushil and Khushi, a police officer said, adding that Sushil's mother Ombatti and sister Rekha were injured in the blaze.
According to police sources, Rekha has come to her parents' home in Muradnagar area, along with her daughter Khushi, a few days ago.
The incident occurred today afternoon, when all four of them went to the cattle house, which is adjacent to their home, the officer said.
Ombati and Rekha were rushed to a nearby hospital where they are recuperating with their injuries.
"As per preliminary investigation, fire erupted due to a gas cylinder blast. A written complaint has also been filed by the family stating the same," Muradnagar SHO R P Sharma said.
Investigators, however, said they haven't recovered parts of the cylinder from the spot so far, which suggests that the source of the explosion could be something else.
Besides, LPG cylinder is generally not kept in a village cattle house, an investigator said.
A forensic team from Meerut rushed to the spot and picked up samples from there, the SHO said, adding "we are investigating the case from all angles".
