Patana: A woman succumbed to the burn injuries she had sustained while preparing a torch to drive away elephants at Jhatipada Sahi in Guludipasi village under Patana block in Keonjhar district, Friday night.
The deceased was identified as Jhuli Barik, 36, wife of Sankhali Barik.
According to sources, a tusker had strayed into the backyard of one Arjun Barik and destroyed his vegetable crops Friday night. Locals apprehended that the elephant might strike back anytime. Panicked, Sankhali, his wife and four other villagers made a bonfire on the concrete road near his backyard and started preparations to drive away the animal, if it strayed into the village. All of them started preparing the torch to drive away the tusker, which got separated from the herd.
Jhuli was pouring burnt engine oil on the torch when her saree caught fire. Soon, the flames engulfed her entire body. Her husband and others rushed her to Patana CHC and later to the district headquarters hospital in Keonjhar. The doctors at the DHH, however, advised them to shift Jhuli, who sustained 100 per cent burns, to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. She was being shifted to Cuttack but had to be rushed back to Anandapur Sub-divisional Hospital after her health condition further deteriorated. However, doctors at Ananandapur hospital pronounced her dead on arrival in the wee hours of Saturday.
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Dr Niranjan Sahu of Patana CHC said, “She had sustained 100 per cent burns.”
Ghashipura police registered a case and handed over the body to her family members for cremation after a post-mortem.
PNN
