Ludhiana: In a disturbing incident in Jagaraon’s Aligarh village, a woman suffered near-fatal burns after her mobile phone, left charging on the bed, caught fire in the early hours today. The blaze quickly consumed the bedding, engulfing the woman, identified as 28-year-old Manpreet Kaur (also known as Rimpy), who was asleep alongside her elderly mother. She sustained burns covering approximately 90% of her body and is now in critical condition.
Doctors at Government Civil Hospital initially treated her before diverting her to a specialized burn unit in Faridkot. Her statement has not yet been recorded due to the severity of her injuries, police have confirmed.
Manpreet and her mother were in their maternal home after suffering emotional distress following recent upheavals in their life—she had divorced and her father had passed away. According to preliminary findings, she was under significant mental strain when the incident occurred. Her mother alerted neighbors upon noticing the flames. Locals intervened to extinguish the fire and rushed her to the hospital. “The fire spread in seconds. It was horrifying,” said a villager who witnessed the event, describing a scene of swift, desperate attempts at rescue.
Charging devices on soft surfaces is a well-documented fire risk. In Rajasthan earlier this year, a mobile-phone charger exploded due to intense heat, leading to a house fire and injuring a woman . Similarly, in Kerala, a man suffered burns when his device ignited beneath a pillow, a common trigger in such cases.