A total of four persons, three of them brothers, died due to asphyxiation in a water tank at Kolasib town near the Assam-Mizoram border on Friday, a senior police officer said.
Mizoram Deputy Inspector General of Police (Northern Range) Lalbiakthanga Khiangte said the incident occurred at around 4 pm on Friday when the three brothers entered inside a newly-constructed concrete water tank and tried to remove bamboo poles used for supporting the upper slab of the tank.
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The three siblings were identified as Albert Vanlalhriata Parte (40), who was an Assistant Sub-Inspector working as a cashier in Kolasib SP office, Andrew Vanlalhruaia Parte (40) and William Lalduhawma Parte (36), all lived in Kolasib’s Diakkawn Nursery neighborhood, he said.
The family was constructing a new concrete building, he said.
As the three brothers could not get out of the water tank purportedly due to asphyxiation, their neighbour, Lalchhuanliana (60), who rushed to the spot and entered inside the water tank to rescue them, also could not make it, he said.
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On learning the incident, local volunteers rushed to the spot and managed to pull the four out of the water tank, the senior police officer said.
The four victims were rushed to Kolasib hospital where they were declared dead, he said.
Albert Vanlalhriata Parte and Vanlalhruaia Parte (twins) were married while their younger brother, William Lalduhawma Parte was a bachelor, he said.
Their parents recently tested positive for Covid19 and are currently under home isolation, he said.
According to Khiangte, a case of unnatural death has been registered to investigate the incident.
Post-mortem will be conducted on Saturday, he added.
Highly-placed sources said the water tank has only one entry or exit point and has already stored some amount of water.
Meanwhile, a 25-year-old man was killed when the stone quarry where he was working caved-in at Khumtung area in Serchhip district on Friday, police said.
The victim, Mohammed Sazad from Jharkhand, was a worker of Ghram company, who operated an earth excavator, the police said.
The incident occurred around 3 pm on Friday when the victim was working at the stone place with his earth excavator, they said.
The Ghram company is currently working on the expansion of a highway between Khumtung and Keitum villages in Serchhip district, the police said.