Chennai: A man died while trying to rescue his brother’s family from electrocution at their residence in Gummidipoondi SIPCOT, near Chennai, on Thursday night.The deceased was identified as R Nagarajan (37), a native of Gorimedu. Police said Nagarajan and his elder brother, R Sekar (40), were construction workers and lived with their families in adjacent sheds in the locality.Amid heavy rain, Sekar’s wife, S Revathi (35), suffered an electric shock while removing clothes from an iron clotheline tied to a palm tree outside their house. Hearing her cries, Sekar and their daughter, S Subha (16), rushed to her rescue but were electrocuted too.Nagarajan, who rushed to save them, was also electrocuted when he touched the clothesline. Neighbours rushed all four to a nearby hospital, where Nagarajan was declared brought dead. The others sustained serious injuries and were referred to the Government Medical College Hospital, Tiruvallur, for treatment.Nagarajan’s body was sent to the Ponneri Government Hospital for postmortem before being handed over to his family. Police said preliminary inquiries found no overhead electric lines or poles near the tree to which the clothesline was tied. The current may have leaked from the house’s electrical wiring to the iron clothesline, but the exact cause is yet to be ascertained.
